Stargate SG-1: Ghosts of the Past
by ShauriSutlar
Summary: A new team faces a new enemy...or is it? Post Season 10. This is my first story on here, a bit of a backdoor pilot for a series, so reviews are not only welcome...they are encouraged! :)
1. Prologue

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Rated M for some language and mature themes and some off-screen violence. My apologies to any German speakers if I got the language bits a teensy bit wrong. Google Translate is not always the best. On that note, some of the things expressed here are NOT my opinions, feelings or anything of the sort. My apologies if anyone is offended, but sometimes one needs to tell the rough stories, no?**

**DISCLAIMER: Stargate, Stargate SG-1, and its related characters and setting are not my property and I'm only borrowing them for a little while for some free entertainment. No infringement is intended.**

**Prologue**

The clouds, swollen and heavy with rain, hung low in the sky above Manhattan as though hoping to intimidate the buildings to shrink back into the ground from which they had sprung. It was unseasonably cool for late October, as a steady cold front had swooped down from Canada to engulf the entire New England area. Staring bleakly upwards, Jack O'Neill grumbled and remembered why he disliked big cities.

Pushing his way along First Avenue, O'Neill was bothered by the throngs of people. It was mid-morning and he was already running just a little late. "Damn it all," he muttered to no one in particular. Once more glancing at his watch, O'Neill steadfastly strode into the monumental building which was his destination. Once inside he removed the regulation combination cap from his head and swore again. It was already beginning to drizzle. Tucking the cap under his left arm, O'Neill marched to the elevator to stab uselessly at the already lighted "up" button. He smiled shyly at a young woman, probably a secretary of some sort, and said "You'd think we'd be smart enough to know that doesn't help, wouldn't you?"

The woman rewarded O'Neill with a pretty smile, nodding rather noncommittally and returned to reading the papers in her hands. Soon after, however, the elevator doors opened with their customary _ding_ and O'Neill gestured to allow the lady entrance before himself to which she assented with a shy smile in return. "Sixteen please," she said hopefully.

Politely nodding O'Neill struck the requested button before his own which was forty-five. Already he was going over his presentation in his head and wishing for the thousandth time that it was Daniel standing here, not himself. _Oh well,_ he thought,_ this is what you get for getting kicked upstairs old man._ O'Neill chuckled to himself as another part of his mind petulantly replied, _who are you calling "old"?_

After several minutes, and five floor stops later, the elevator opened upon the forty-fifth floor. Taking a deep breath after leaving the car, O'Neill stalked his way to the reception desk he knew to be here. As he approached, the secretary rose smoothly from her seat and with a charming smile waved him immediately inside the office for which she was responsible.

The office was not spacious by any means, but it seemed well suited to the man who occupied it. "How have you been, General?"came the deep southern drawl of the man as he stood and extended his hand to O'Neill.

Replying very simply as he took the offered hand, O'Neill smiled, "Couldn't be better, sir." Taking a seat opposite the desk, O'Neill set his cap in the seat beside him and continued, "I assume you've been briefed on why I'm here?" At the other man's nod Jack plodded on, "As you may or may not be aware, sir, the United States has been operating a top-secret military base below NORAD in Cheyenne Mountain." O'Neill removed a thick folder from his briefcase and passed it across the desk. "The basics of what you need to know is all there, Mister Secretary, with much more coming in the next few days."

O'Neill fell silent for a few minutes to allow the other man to peruse the contents of the folder, the man's eyes growing steadily wider with each page. "This is...incredible. An entire decade and no one has known about this, is that what you're telling me?" The nod he received in reply was as chilling as it was simple. "I knew that there was a significant reason for the UK, France, Russia and China to all come together making the same proposals but I had no idea that _this_ was the reason." The Secretary General of the United Nations slumped back in his overstuffed leather chair and sighed heavily.

"Mister Secretary," Jack replied, "this is only the tip of the iceberg."


	2. Chapter One

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Rated M for some language and mature themes and some off-screen violence. My apologies to any German speakers if I got the language bits a teensy bit wrong. Google Translate is not always the best. On that note, some of the things expressed here are NOT my opinions, feelings or anything of the sort. My apologies if anyone is offended, but sometimes one needs to tell the rough stories, no?**

**DISCLAIMER: Stargate, Stargate SG-1, and its related characters and setting are not my property and I'm only borrowing them for a little while for some free entertainment. No infringement is intended.**

**Chapter One**

The room itself was unusually hot, despite how far beneath the surface it was. Perhaps it was the body heat of the technicians as they scurried about in their various tasks, checking and re-checking everything. In this room, one could not afford to make mistakes. In this room, mistakes could kill. It was not the first time that General Landry had that thought. This was the first line of defense, though the world did not realize it. It had demanded a payment in blood, and that payment had been high. It had been too high, in Landry's opinion. He had to make those big decisions, and that was what this place was all about.

He stood behind Sergeant Harriman in the control room of the most important military base on the entire planet, Stargate Command. Through the window he could see his newest team gathered in a tight knot before a metal ramp. They stared in abject wonder at the circular device before them. Few could gaze upon the dark, ominous hues of the Stargate and not find their entire world had changed overnight. Landry could certainly understand. He had stood here for hours, staring in awe when he had taken over command of this base from its previous CO, General Jack O'Neill. "Jack," he had told the exiting commander, "I have no idea how you've kept this place together this past year. I only hope I can do as well."

O'Neill had only smiled at his replacement, in that lopsided little way that he had, as he answered, "These folks have been doing this for a long time. Trust them to know their jobs and you'll do just fine, Hank."

Returning his attention to the moment, Landry looked out over his team as the great circle rumbled to life. There was a deep sense of pride upon the General's face that nothing too terrible had happened on his watch this past year; not since SG-1 had finally put an end to the Ori threat once and for all. After that, the various members had slowly gone their separate ways.

Colonel Carter had, after leaving command of Atlantis to Robert Woolsey, had been given a new assignment. Colonel Mitchell, who now held the illustrious posting of base Second-in-Command, had taken on the not insignificant task of finding and training new recruits to the project. Daniel Jackson had, likewise, requested to be removed from active field duty so that he could devote more time to his research.

Then there was Teal'c. The large Jaffa who had been as much a part of this command as any member of SG-1, who had worked so very hard at attaining his place as a citizen of Earth, had said his goodbyes and departed for his home world of Chulak. General Landry and the IOA had been informed that Chulak was to be the new seat of the Nation of Free Jaffa.

It had been hell to gather and train the members of the new SG-1, but beneath the layers of gear, Landry could still pick them out. The one who caught his eye the quickest was, quite naturally, their demolitions expert. Landry was rarely certain to which of them he was speaking at any given moment, but the man certainly knew his job. He was not large, this man, but stocky and very centered. If he so chose, he could plant his feet upon the deck and not even Teal'c could move him. That was impressive, to say the least. He was engrossed with fine tuning his gear, to be sure that everything was within easy reach. The only one of the group to not carry a P-90, he instead seemed to favor the larger and slightly more powerful M-60.

Beside him stood the team's new commander. He was tall, with bleach blond hair beneath his uniform cap. The man's deep set hazel eyes regarded each member of his team carefully. His name was Allen Godfrey, a major in the United States Air Force, and well suited to the task of leading this special group of people where he was leading them.

A brilliant flash of light as the massive device whooshed to life. God, he didn't think he'd ever get tired of seeing the Stargate open! Leaning forward, Landry took hold of the microphone and spoke to the departing team, "Your mission is a go, SG-1. Have fun."

Godfrey gave Landry a perfect salute, checked his team's gear once more and then began his first live walk up the ramp. Naturally, he was scared. He'd never really done anything like this before and, for just a moment, he was not completely sure he wanted to any longer. He could feel every eye in the room boring into his back. For so many here, what he was about to do was considered old hat; but not to him. Screwing up the courage of leadership he plunged, face first, into the event horizon.

Almost as though stepping through a curtain, he found himself standing in the middle of a large forested clearing. The sun shone brightly, bathing everything in the soft glow of early evening. Wherever he might look, Godfrey saw trees. Myriad were their colors, with leaves ranging from sapphire to amethyst. In fact, gem-like hues sparkled and glinted all around him in the radiance of the sun. Even upon the hard ground, crunching beneath his boots like a thousand tiny beetles, stones lay openly as though begging to be scooped up. In the harshness of the cloudless sky Godfrey donned his sunglasses, fending off the brutality of the light.

Despite the brilliance that surrounded him, Godfrey was neither hot nor even uncomfortable. A steady breeze wafted through the clearing, bringing with it a thousand new scents. As he could only assume these scents to be normal of the planet, the major chose to ignore them for now. With great caution he advanced down the cracked and weathered stone of the Stargate's steps.

The soft slurping sound of the event horizon announced the arrival of his team behind him. Godfrey turned to look at his team, their first time off-world. Upon each of their faces he could see the wonder that he knew was echoed in his own. Each would see this new world differently, and Godfrey found himself wishing he could share those thoughts with them; to see how they see, and to show them how he sees.

But, to business. They had a set of ruins to investigate. "Finn, Durann, secure the perimeter if you would. Wally, double-check the MALP readings." After a hail of 'yes sir', each set about their tasks with an almost practiced ease. Finn confused him a bit as he watched her flanking the left side of the 'Gate. Lovely girl, he thought, but rough around the edges.

She was small, only five-foot-five and, at a meager nineteen years old, she was the youngest member of the team. He had recruited her straight out of Pararescue school and she had jumped at the chance for adventure. "Clear!" she called. Yes, Ashley Finn knew her job. They all did or they wouldn't be here now.

A second voice echoed Finn's, a deep and rumbling voice. Nor was that was not the most unusual thing about that voice; no, it was the buzzing, dual quality of the voice which called Godfrey's attention. It was Durann, or more correctly, it was Keltit, the Tok'ra symbiote he carried in his head. Godfrey shivered at the thought. He'd read the reports on the Goa'uld and the Tok'ra, of course. Having a snake around seemed like a good idea to Godfrey.

It was a fact, Godfrey had not really had a chance to figure out just how to use pronouns in reference to Durann and Keltit. Him? Her? They? It could surely drive him mad if he let it. Keltit had made no bones whatsoever in her first physical exam that she was quite female, thank you very much. Though when asked why she was residing in a male host, Keltit would only smile and change the subject. Allen figured it would all smooth out in time.

Meanwhile Wally, his second in command, was busy pouring over the wheeled probe's latest data collection cycle. Captain Wallace Tenbaum was regular Air Force and every bit as smart as the astrophysicist he was replacing. Sure, Samantha Carter was a legend now, but there was always room for another, and Wally was the one. Through and through, Godfrey knew this to be so.

Then, there was his little linguist. Godfrey chuckled to himself as he thought of her. Doctor Monroe. Her parents must have had a rather wicked sense of humor to name her Marilyn, which she rightly hated. So, the pretty Englishwoman went by Lynn. He had to agree that was a much nicer name anyway. Barely an inch taller than Finn, and much more fragile by the look of her, Monroe approached her superior cautiously. "I do hate to be a bother, sir," she began in her sweet lilting accent. "but we are loosing the light. The briefing claims that it will be night here in only a few hours. We should be going."

Sighing heavily, Godfrey nodded as he held up a hand. "Hold your horses, Doc. I know you brainy types like to get right down to it, but I've got a job to do here too, you know."

Sparkling green eyes twinkled at him from beneath the brim of her ghillie hat. "Of course you do, Major. I'm only reminding you of our imposed time-table." With that, Monroe pointed to the west, where the planet's sun was beginning to sink. "It will take almost two hours to walk to the site from here."

"She's right, Major," came Keltit's opinion. "The faster we begin, the sooner we may leave."

"Getting a feeling, Kel?" Godfrey smiled wide, enjoying how they were already beginning to gel as a group.

Taking her commander's bait, the symbiote replied with a soft grin. "Call it woman's intuition, if you like." Keltit laughed then, a deeply disturbing sound, as she toyed with these Tau'ri. They were not used to her. Indeed, she was not yet used to herself any more. Durann was fine company to be sure but he was, after all, still a he. It had not been entirely her choice to take him as a host. No, Keltit much preferred the female of the species. Perhaps, one of these young women would allow her..._No_, she thought.

There came a voice from within her mind, /_Grown tired of me already, Kel?/_ It was Durann, her host. His tone held a bitter-sweet humor in it. Resigned, he continued, /_I'm not surprised that you're looking. Not exactly a perfect match, are we dear?/_

Keltit sighed and shook her head slowly.** /_You know I love you, Dur, but I have needs. Unfortunately, they are needs you cannot meet. We always knew the time would come when we should part._/** It saddened her greatly to think of leaving him, but he simply could not fulfill all the functions as her host. Her brothers were adamant that she wait for a proper host. That was what had led them here. Keltit was in hiding.

Surely her brethren knew where she had gone, to the Tau'ri. In time, she might return to them and fulfill her function, but for now she wanted adventure. She wanted to experience life and the struggles of those she would ask to house her children. Keltit could feel Durann deflate as he, too, considered his life without her.

He remembered how he lay dying and the old woman who came to him. She had said that she was also dying, but a part of her could live on in him; that he need not die as well. Durann had been from a rather simple world, long held under the boot heels of the System Lords. In his fear of death, Durann had agreed and became host to Keltit. That was two years ago. _Okay, so you're needing to spawn. Do you really have to leave me to do it?_

/_Of course_./ she gently chided him. /_You aren't built right, silly_./ It had been a rather intriguing experience for both of them, getting to explore the deepest recesses of the other's mind.

Just then, the sound of something approximating a bird let out a loud screeching howl. Those for whom military training was second-nature brought their weapons to the ready. Scanning the tree line for anything that might possibly be out of place, they were relieved to see nothing but local fauna scurrying about their own tiny concerns. "Alright people, let's move it out." Godfrey ordered. "Kel, if you'd be so kind as to take point. Finn, bring up our six. Wally and I flank the Doc."

Though all nodded and fell into position, Monroe felt a bit out of place. Patronized, more like, as though she had to be escorted around. Did she not carry a weapon as well? All indications were, this planet was devoid of habitation, only the ruins remained to tell that anyone had ever lived here. Let the men be men, she supposed, and safest in the middle.

They set out to the north-west, towards the great mystery of the ruins. Now that they were moving, Lynn could feel her excitement growing. What might they find there? Perhaps even, dare she think it, who? She watched the Tok'ra intently as they walked, and had already known which of them was in control. What she had read of Durann told the tale of a simple farmer, untrained in the ways of combat. That meant very little to her, in the long run, as Monroe had not been trained either. So it seemed that, at least for the foreseeable future, Keltit would be their companion while off-world.

Lynn found herself drawn to the Tok'ra, though she couldn't quite say why. Perhaps it was professional curiosity? She tried to imagine what it might feel like to carry a symbiote, to hear thoughts that were not her own, but she could not imagine it. It was, to put it bluntly, _alien_. It wasn't fair to Keltit for her to think that way, but there it was as plain as day. Glancing back, Monroe spotted Finn, holding her P-90 and looking every bit the soldier as the men. Airman, she corrected herself. These blokes called themselves airmen.

It was a long walk ahead of them all, and they proceeded in abject silence. Their orders did not specify it, but it just seemed right as each drank in the planet around them.

* * *

><p>Klaus looked out over the ridge that hid him from view of Heaven's Gate, and saw the five strangers step through it. He was not aware that any other teams were scheduled to be sent here. Carefully he unslung his rifle from his shoulder and with a tiny click the powerful scope sprung to life. After making an adjustment or two for bearing and distance, Klaus gazed thorough his scope in astonishment. They were humans! There were rumors throughout the Reich that humans were wreaking utter havoc upon the devils and their so-called Gods.<p>

Perhaps these were some of them? He thought perhaps not, however. As he watched the newcomers at their business, he could already tell that only three were militarily trained. He could tell by the way that they looked around them, and the way they moved. Klaus could easily kill them all from here, but what fun would that be? He was curious and wanted to know more about them.

He continued to watch them in silence. Within minutes they were forming up and moving out. Towards the ruins, that was good. His team had already explored them and found nothing of consequence. No, their prize was elsewhere. Klaus stood upon the horns of a dilemma. Should he tell his commander of the newcomers? They seemed harmless enough, he supposed, and obviously did not know what was here. They would likely investigate the ruins and return home, wherever that was. No, he would not mention them unless he had no other choice.

Standing, Klaus switched off his scope and returned his rifle to his shoulder. Tapping once at his ear, he spoke softly, "Ay Gee four to Ay Gee Prime, nothing to report." A small voice crackled harshly into his ear, "Very well, Major. Return to base."

Klaus nodded, even though his Oberstleutnant could not see him. "At once, sir."

* * *

><p>"Alright, we're here. Now what?" Godfrey asked, staring at the ruined urban sprawl before them. It was a city alright, ancient and deserted but for the odd birdlike creature. These were not ruins in the sense that he defined the word. To Allen Godfrey, ruins were built out of stone and mud, not glass and steel. But then, here it was. The five stood high upon a ridge gazing at a city that had long ago decided death was preferable to living. Its buildings jutted up from the ground like the shattered fingers of some sleeping giant's mangled hand. The streets far below them were flayed by the encroaching wild. As they stared, a flock of those bird-like creatures suddenly took wing as one ruined pinnacle let loose a horrid screeching and tumbled to the ground in a thunderous detritus filled chaos.<p>

It was akin to seeing Manhattan or Los Angeles broken and long dead. These people must have been not too far advanced from us, Allen thought and said so. Lynn nodded her agreement. "What do you think, Major? War, or disuse?"

"I don't see a lot of bodies lying around. In fact I don't see _any_ bodies lying around. Does that strike anyone as odd?" Major Godfrey felt a growing disquiet in the very pit of his stomach. He looked around at his team for confirmation that it was, in fact, odd.

He did not find what he was looking for. Keltit shook her head and answered first, "No, Major. The local wildlife would have devoured the corpses long ago. If there were any, that is. The path we walked was well traveled. I would guess a mass exodus or evacuation of the city." All the others seemed to agree with her.

Godfrey, however, was not so easily convinced. He turned to Finn, "You're the medic. Any chance we can get a radiation level or something?"

The girl released her grip on her weapon and unslung her pack. Once on the ground, Ashley dug through it without a word. Standing moments later, she took readings with the Geiger counter she had packed. "All levels seem to be well within acceptable limits, sir. If it was a bomb, it was dispersed a very long time ago." Satisfied that she had answered the Major's question, Finn returned the device to her pack.

Godfrey took another look around, nodding. "We've got a good defensible position. The sun's going down, so we'll camp for the night," he held up his hand to forestall Monroe's coming argument, "before heading into the city tomorrow. Look, Lynn, we've got a week to crawl all over this. We're all tired and could use the rest. That's it."

"Yes Major," was all the woman said. Instead of putting up a harder fight as she would like, Monroe dropped her pack to the ground and rummaged though it for her digital camera. While the rest of the team was setting up their camp for the night, Lynn busied herself taking images of the massive city before the light faded. Once she had a suitable collection, Monroe shut off the camera and started to help get the tents set up.

In a matter of half an hour the camp was set and a small, smokeless fire was going. The team sat around the fire and looked each at the others while they ate. "Anyone for twenty questions?" Allen asked hopefully. "I'll even go first. Lynn, ask me something."

Monroe blinked, looking up a bit startled to be called upon. "I suppose the best question would be, 'why are you out here?' Rather, what drew you to this work?"

Godfrey chuckled, "Cutting to the chase, eh Doc?" He took a small drink from his canteen and continued, "My country called and I answered. Never wanted to be anywhere but on the front lines. When I was a boy I read books like 'All Quiet on the Western Front' and couldn't help but imagine myself out there fighting along side them. How about you, Ashley?"

"Me, sir?" The girl looked more surprised than Lynn. She stammered and cast about for a good answer. "Same as you, sir, I guess. You asked me and I came; simple as that."

Durann laughed, "Indeed, as simple as all that? Surely there's more to it." He resumed eating and awaited her response.

Smiling, there was a bit of color that rose into her cheeks, "Well, I wondered what it would be like to walk on another planet. You know, meet aliens and stuff."

Playfully flashing her eyes, Keltit replied softly, "And now that you have met one, what do you think?"

The color in Finn's cheeks deepened and she gazed into the bottom of her bowl, "A little strange, I guess. I mean...I don't know what I mean." She fell silent. Only when she felt Keltit's hand upon her shoulder did she even look up.

"We'll be spending a great deal of time together, do not be shy with your questions." Keltit regarded the young woman gently, as might a mother for her child. That empathy shone through, despite the body in which it was housed. "I've noticed a certain trepidation from you in reference to me. To us. That is understandable." She watched as each head bobbed in agreement. "As this is not my first male host, I am hardly offended to be called 'he'. Those who know us well, such as yourselves, will know the differences and address accordingly...in time." The Tok'ra smiled, a beautiful feminine smile as she looked around to her team-mates. "And time is something of which Durann and I have

plenty."

Getting a playful twinkle in her ice blue eyes, she asked innocently, "Unless, of course, one of you fine ladies would care to make a new best friend?"

All was silence as the enormity of Kel's question sank into each member of the team. Each one found themselves pondering the ramifications. Godfrey spoke first, "Hold on there, kid. Tell me that was a joke. That was a joke, right?" He examined the Tok'ra's face in the flickering firelight.

Keltit stared back at him, not a muscle of her face twitched. "If it were not, what then Major? You know better then these others why I am here."

For the first time in several hours, Tenbaum decided to speak, "Let's say for the moment that one of these women accepted your offer, what about Durann?"

A brief lowering of her head and Durann answered, "I would be content to return to my people, Captain, or to remain on Earth to help yours. Kel has taught me much in our brief time together, and while I would hate to lose her to another host, I can't very well hold her back." Durann turned away to look over the city once more as the rest examined his words.

"How 'bout we shelf this particular subject for when we get back, okay?" Godfrey suggested, sensing the abrupt downturn in what, he had hoped, would be a light 'getting to know you' sort of discussion. "How long are the nights here, Wally?"

Tenbaum answered slowly, his Texan drawl more pronounced in the night, "About ten hours, sir." The major nodded and began to break them into paired watches, himself and Monroe, then Tenbaum and Keltit, followed by Keltit and Finn.

The next morning found the team rested and very eager to explore. Monroe reiterated to her fellows that no one had walked these paths in a terribly long time. Almost a child she seemed in her excitement. Hurriedly Lynn had her tent broken down and stashed away. About her neck hung a small 35mm camera and there was a pen and pad jutting from the breast pocket of her tactical vest. Her weapon dangled from its clip, neglected and unwanted. Monroe decided that from here on, she would not carry one of these unless absolutely necessary.

For her part, Ashley made the most of the morning by stirring the fire to make coffee. She had heard that the Major was a right old bastard without his morning cup. He was handsome, and he was an officer. A very bad combination. But he was also kind, she could tell. Finn had the sense that Captain Tenbaum did not want her here, whether it was because she was young or because she was a woman, but Finn didn't really care.

After making coffee for her team-mates, Finn set herself to her normal morning routine of thirty push-ups and twenty-five crunches. There was more, including a run, but that was simply not feasible off-world. She would have to settle for this; at least Ashley was doing something.

Durann busied himself with checking his gear. **/_Is there interest, do you think?_/** Keltit asked quietly. Durann only shrugged to himself in answer. A resentment began to fester in his heart towards this creature who had literally brought him back from the brink of death. She had promised him life and companionship, only now to ponder leaving at her first opportunity.** /_Don't be this way, Dur._/** she chided him. **/_I'm only exploring the options._/**

_/How else should I be, Kel?/_ Dur shot back with a cold venom. /_I had thought maybe you would stay with me./_ His 'voice' took on the tone of a hurt and petulant child, /_I need you still./_

A tenderness born of ages resided in the mental caress as Keltit replied, **/_And I you, Durann. I'm not going anywhere, dear one. Not yet, anyway._/**

_/I know, Kel. Why not leave this for later then? They're ready to go now./_ Durann hefted his weapon into a comfortable grip and faced the group. It caught them both by surprise that everyone was looking at them, confusion and concern quite plain upon their faces. Godfrey stepped up to the stocky Tok'ra and asked if they were all right. Durann nodded slowly replying, "Just a difference of opinion." Without another word on the matter, he stalked off to assume the pointman position.

The team fell into the same positions they had occupied the day before and soon they were stepping carefully down the ridge to a nearby road. The road had, at one time, been paved. Now it lay in shattered chunks, pushed aside to be reclaimed by the wilderness. The wilderness surrounded the city not unlike a besieging army, poised to strike at any sign of weakness.


	3. Chapter Two

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Rated M for some language and mature themes and some off-screen violence. My apologies to any German speakers if I got the language bits a teensy bit wrong. Google Translate is not always the best. On that note, some of the things expressed here are NOT my opinions, feelings or anything of the sort. My apologies if anyone is offended, but sometimes one needs to tell the rough stories, no?**

**DISCLAIMER: Stargate, Stargate SG-1, and its related characters and setting are not my property and I'm only borrowing them for a little while for some free entertainment. No infringement is intended.**

**Chapter Two**

Each intrepid step drove the team deeper and deeper into the hulking mass of a dead city. Here and there, languishing and long forgotten, there sat the wreckage of what could only be described as a ground car. Closer investigation of the vehicle revealed very little beyond the fact that there was no pilot. A tiny mechanical clicking echoed loudly as Monroe snapped pictures of the wreckage for later study. "I hope the library is still intact, Major." Monroe excitedly sang. "So far we still have no idea what these people even looked like."

Godfrey sighed, having to admit that the lady was right. "Well, for the moment, let's just worry about not finding a subway by accident." Tenbaum chuckled to himself.

Turning sharply on the Major, Monroe scowled. "We have yet to even see any indication that these people possessed any form of an Underground. Nor do I care for the implication that any of us would be so clumsy."

"Lighten up, Doc." Godfrey relented. "You're right, but we don't have a sign that they didn't either. It's hard to say how sturdy these roads are after all this time." Godfrey looked around in a full circle and frowned. "We don't even really know how old this place is."

Two hours and a lot of fruitless searching later, the team found themselves standing before a tall, columned building of near regal grandeur. Taking up nearly half of a city block the building stood, seeming to dare nature to encroach upon its unyielding walls. Nature had not been so intimidated as evidenced by the vines that crept and wound their way over the walls, a million probing fingers hoping to find even the slightest breach. Flanking the grandiose marble steps, now withered and cracked with age, there stood a pair of statues.

Unthinking, Monroe approached the statue to her right, the nearest to her, and reached out to lay one trembling hand upon its cool stone surface. The creature depicted by the statue seemed to evoke the sense of a wolf by its shape and demeanor, though none of the humans could quite account for a wolf ever rearing back as these creatures were cursed to do until they finally fell to dust. The lady was nearly climbing the walls in her excitement. "Major, I think we've found it!" she cried.

Godfrey frowned, unconvinced. "What makes you so sure, Doc?"

The rest of the team stood in a loose semicircle staring at the enormous columns and grandiose architecture of the place. Lynn made only a light-hearted frown to her superior and began to reply as she mounted each gleaming marble step. "I'm not entirely certain, Major. However, do you not agree that this structure would seem to fit the idea of a library?"

Godfrey shrugged and gave the doctor no answer as he had none to give. Even in the brief time that the team had been in the city, Alan was getting the creeps. "Hold it, Doctor. Let's see if you're right. Kel, Wally, check the door please." The pair moved immediately as they were told to do, slinking smoothly over the deteriorating steps of the massive building. Weapons tracked from right to left even as their eyes did the same, seeking out the slightest chance of danger.

Finding none, Tenbaum waved back to his CO, "All clear, Major!"

Nodding slowly, Godfrey gestured to Monroe, "After you, Doc." At this bidding Monroe bounded up the steps with the eagerness of a girl on Christmas morning. Smiling in spite of himself the Major turned to Finn, jerking his head in a friendly fashion indicating it was time to follow.

* * *

><p>"What is <em>that<em>!?" inquired a harsh voice behind Klaus Werner. Werner could only shrug in answer. None of his team had ever seen anything like this odd wheeled machine that seemed to stand guard between themselves and Heaven's Gate.

The machine was squat, perched securely upon its six tires, unmoving. However Oberstleutnant Marx had no intention of discovering this strange device to be some form of Devil's juggernaut. However, this ridiculous impasse could not be allowed to continue indefinitely. They had achieved their prize; the Reich would not wait.

To Marx's right a soft voice spoke, smooth contralto belying the truth of the woman's heart. "Mein Oberstleutnant, it does not look like any sort of machine we have seen the Devils employ. I don't believe it is theirs."

Marx was far from convinced. Turning steel blue eyes into his subordinate's harsh green eyes, Marx scowled. "Who then, do you think possesses such a device, Hauptmann Geller?"

Unable to hold her superior's gaze Belinda Geller lowered her eyes as her cheeks flushed with shame. "I do not know, sir. None of the cultures which we have encountered utilize a device such as this. I suggest that we disable it and bring it back with us." Returning her eyes to his, now filled with cold light, Geller spoke up before Marx could say anything, "I will volunteer."

Without waiting for permission, the formidable young woman crept out from the bushes that hid her team from the device's possible view. Taking two cautious steps forward, she stopped in a half-crouch, waiting for it to spring to life and cut her down where she stood. Marx found himself impressed with Geller's vigor, but also a heightened sense of caution regarding her reputation for ambition.

The rest of her team left behind with barely held breath, Geller continued forward. Step by painstaking step, her weapon pointed at the infernal thing crouched stoutly before her. Still it had not moved or made the slightest indication that it acknowledged her existence. There were no obvious markings upon it that she could tell, but that was of no real account. If the thing was of alien origin, was it reasonable for her to assume that she recognize any markings?

Still, the thing sat as inert and unfeeling as ever, one gangly appendage coiled above the body like a snake poised to strike. Geller circled the thing slowly, neither her eyes nor weapon leaving it for a moment. After making a full circuit around the device, she slid her rifle over her shoulder and knelt beside the thing. Who would make such a monstrosity and then just leave it sitting here for anyone to find, wondered the young woman. That was truly of no concern to Geller. Whatever it was, it belonged to the Reich now. Withdrawing several small tools from her web-belt, Geller began to dismantle a small section of the thing's housing...

* * *

><p>"Will this take much longer, Doctor?" inquired a very grumpy second in command.<p>

Without looking up from the disorderly spread of books around her, Monroe answered softly, "That's hard to say, Captain." Pausing in her reading to take a quick sip from her canteen, Lynn leaned back in a chair that was obviously not designed for the human form. "Some of these symbols are familiar, but I can't quite seem to make heads nor tails of them."

"Familiar how?" a very inquisitive Ashley wanted to know. "I mean, I know linguistics isn't really an exact science, but surely some concepts are similar no matter where you go, right?"

Lynn smiled at the eager young woman and answered, "That would perhaps be so, on Earth. Unfortunately that may not always be the case on another world. Still," Monroe rubbed at her sweating forehead with the back of one hand, "that really is the best place to start, nearly always. To answer your question, I can't quite say _how_ they seem familiar; only that I feel like I've seen them before."

Her curiosity left unsatisfied Ashley returned to her own book and tried desperately to help. To Ashley Finn it seemed a logical thing to get in a little cross-training if she could. Finn knew that she'd never be anywhere near Monroe's ability, but anything that she could learn would increase her usefulness to her teammates.

Meanwhile, Godfrey and Keltit were busied with searching for alternate exit points from the building and other bits of low-grade reconnaissance. "You know Major," the Tok'ra's husky voice proclaimed softly as they left behind yet another useless room, "I would like to apologize to you for any discomfort my offer may have caused. It was not my intention to immediately begin sowing discord within the group."

Stopping short, Godfrey hung his head a bit and scuffed at the loose plaster on the floor with his boot. Keltit's lack of intent was certainly obvious to him. "I know, Kel. It just surprised me, just as I imagine it surprised the others. It's not really something that's come up in discussion before."

"Naturally."

Godfrey looked up to see Keltit, through her male host, smiling quite sweetly at him. Frankly, Godfrey found that a little more unnerving than the offer from last night. "Look, I'm not about to say that I'd be the first in line to say you could just hop on in, but I figure that's really a decision to be taken up with each in their own way. I'm not saying that I wouldn't do it either."

Her smile brightened. "That is kind of you to say Major, even though I know that you don't really mean it. Besides, it would not be another male of the species that I would be seeking anyway. You know why."

"I do, but that doesn't mean I'd sit back and let you die with Durann if I could help it." The Major stood a little straighter, looking into Keltit's eyes, hoping that he looked as sincere as he really was.

Keltit continued walking, poking her head around an open door frame as she spoke, "Captain Tenbaum seemed particularly distressed when I brought it up last night. He wouldn't admit it I'm sure, but the tension was there none the less."

Allen took the next door in the hallway as he thought of an answer. "Yeah, I would say Wally wouldn't do it even if _his_ life depended on it. Pity, really." Godfrey flashed Keltit a charming smile of his own as she approached. "You're a pretty nice gal and I'd hate to lose you like that."

Color rose on her cheeks, male though they were, as Keltit blushed. "You are sweet, Major."

"I bet you say that to all the guys, Kel." Godfrey chuckled.

* * *

><p>Belinda Geller finished replacing the plate she had removed, after tinkering around with the unfamiliar guts of the thing. Now its small motor was rumbling gently as it sat. Her teammates stood around, keeping a very cautious distance from it lest it explode. "It will be fine now, Herr Oberstleutnant. Whatever it is, it belongs to us now. We have what we came for and now more besides. I suggest we return home at once."<p>

"Nein, Fraulein Captain." replied Marx. "Whoever belonged to this thing before may come looking for it and they have obviously used the Gate to come here. Before we leave, they should be stranded so that they cannot follow us." Turning sharply to the other woman on his team, Marx barked sharply, "Sonntag! Can we disable Heaven's Key sufficiently to keep these interlopers from leaving the planet?"

The girl, freshly recruited from the Bund Deutcher Madel and easily the youngest of the hard-bitten team, immediately snapped to attention and replied smartly, "No, Herr Oberstleutnant. In my estimation, any species advanced enough to create such a monstrosity as that," she indicated the rumbling machine in their midst, "would be advanced enough to repair any damage that we could cause to the Key." Choosing her next words very carefully, Leutnant Uta Sonntag continued, "I would recommend completely destroying this site as a means of egress, sir."

Oberstleutnant Karl Marx smiled cruelly. Yes, he liked the way these young girls thought. They were a pride to their race, indeed.

* * *

><p>"Major!" Monroe called hastily, her anxious cry punctuated over the radio by the sound of shattering glass and rapid gunfire.<p>

Godfrey and Keltit broke into a run, vaulting over several small obstacles to reach the main room. What greeted their eyes was chaos. To the left of the pair there crouched Monroe and Finn, pinned down behind an overturned desk. Off to the right Tenbaum continued to dart out from behind a large pillar, staccato bursts from his P-90 ripping into the center of the enormous room. However, this was not the most surprising thing.

In the center of the cavernous chamber, standing haughtily upon a fallen pillar, a creature howled in rage. Its snarling visage regarding the room almost casually, viscous saliva dripping from the beast's snarling maw. Vaguely wolf-like in appearance, its shaggy brown fur bristled as it crouched as though preparing to spring. Finn raised her head from behind the cover she shared with Monroe, fired off five rounds then ducked back. It seemed that Monroe, for her part was more content to use her .45-caliber, firing almost blindly towards the creature that threatened them.

Keltit wasted no time, rushing to the edge of the balcony and raising her heavy M-60 and letting loose a volley of suppressive fire. By the loud howl emitted by the beast Godfrey could tell that several rounds had struck home. Then the near unthinkable happened.

The room lit up as a portion of the pillar below the creature exploded into speeding shards of smoking shrapnel. The creature leapt for the nearest safety it could find, being the overturned desk that hid the women. But the creature's trajectory was cut short by a sharp report and flash of searing energy that left it striking the ground and sliding to a motionless lump before the desk.

That energy was not unknown to anyone on this team, though only one among them had actually seen it before. "Staff weapons!" Godfrey declared. "Get ready!" He raised his weapon in the general direction from whence the staff blast had come.

As the sound of the battle began to die, the air filled with slowly dissipating smoke and the faint hint of ozone, a new sound could be heard. At first Godfrey thought that there was another of those creatures nearby, given the ferocity of the growl. It sounded to him very much like the sound made by a mountain lion, but with infinitely more malice behind it. "Come on out whoever you are!" He called to the being or creature or whatever it was. His only answer was to see the balcony railing before him vaporize in a shower of sparks and detritus.

Without hesitation, Keltit determined the general direction from which the blast had come and answered with a frightful volley of her own. Though she despised using the tongue in this way Keltit summoned the most authoritative voice she could muster, thankful for the deep resonance granted it by her host, and shouted, "Jaffa, kree! Shak'ti'qua!?" _Attention! What are you doing?_

Slowly, very tentatively, a figure stepped out from behind a far pillar. Even Keltit could not contain her amazement at the stunning figure that revealed itself from the shadows. Easily six inches taller than any of them, it stood proudly. The butt of its now closed staff weapon thrust sharply into the floor as it gazed up at Keltit. It, rather SHE-for it was clearly a female of the species, stood upon two legs that seemed entirely ill designed for the purpose; the feet elongated so that all of her weight rested solely upon her toes. What little remained of once proud Jaffa armor, now shredded and worn to near uselessness, gathered around her waist in a sort of metallic loincloth.

From behind her erect form the team could see the serpentine swaying of a tail. Tawny fur barely covered what had, at one time, been a finely honed musculature now beginning to wither. Broad, bare shoulders thrust back hard as she stood at attention before this one she probably believed to be her new God. It was the head though, thought Godfrey, the head is just...kind of freaky.

Perched atop this proud specimen was a head that bore an elongated snout with sharply stunted whiskers. Darting between what could only be described as lips, though they really bore no resemblance to such, a slender pink tongue flashed. Whether licking at her nearly drooling chops or tasting the air, none could tell. Fleshy triangles that served as ears swiveled forward and back, eager for any further words from her God. Indeed, the Jaffa looked every inch a humanoid great cat.

Godfrey turned to look at Keltit, hoping for some explanation. Her shocked expression proved only that one was not forthcoming from her. "Jaffa?" the Tok'ra inquired forcefully, receiving an affirmative nod. No one on the team could see anything, no markings or tattoos, that might indicate which System Lord she might once have served. Continuing with the Goa'uld tongue, Keltit pressed the Jaffa warrior, "What is your name and whom do you serve?"

The sounds that peeled from the warrior's throat were a jumble of growling purrs and glottal chuffs. The group looked from Keltit to Monroe and back. "She does seem to understand me, Major." Keltit's voice held a slight tone of defeat. "But I'm afraid that I'm at a loss to know what she just said."

Calling up from the ground floor Monroe answered, "Her vocal apparatus likely can't be made to form the sounds of Goa'uld. Let me try, sir." Waiting for a nod from Godfrey, Lynn stepped out from behind the desk, followed closely by Finn whose weapon was lowered but tightly clenched. The slight Englishwoman spoke softly in Goa'uld, "Don't be afraid. We won't hurt you." Pointing to her own forehead and then to the Jaffa's, "Whom do you serve?"

Without hesitation the Jaffa pointed to Keltit's host. Monroe smiled, trying her best to keep fear from her voice. "No, I mean before her; whose army were you part?" Again the Jaffa made the same growling purrs. Seeing Lynn's crestfallen expression the Jaffa lifted her staff weapon and began to scribe a symbol on the ground. Each curving line was scribed with elegance in spite of the crude device used to make each mark. Two ovals formed upon the ground, resting casually on their sides as lines dipped from the inside curves; each line coming to rest upon a crude inverted triangle.

This ensign now formed, the Jaffa returned to her former imposingly statuesque posture. Each looked upon the symbol on the ground and Keltit uttered a sharp gasp. "Bastet," whispered she. Turning swiftly, Keltit strode down the stairs to the main hall.

Monroe was quietly probing the Jaffa for more information, hoping to gain some insight into her language. Pointing to the symbol she had made Monroe said, "Bastet?" The warrior nodded and repeated a portion of her earlier sounds. "Bastet was killed some time ago. You know this, yes?" Again, the Jaffa nodded. She pointed to herself then raised her hand to cover amber eyes then extended her arm to pantomime a scrabbling creature. She tried once more to speak as she made these motions, assuming that the beings before her would soon grasp what she was trying to say.

The Jaffa was, however, grossly disappointed. As Keltit and Godfrey approached the trio- Jaffa, Monroe and Finn-the Jaffa's ears lowered back in a sign of frustration. Monroe suddenly brightened as an idea struck her. "Major! I realized that I've seen this symbol in my research here." She indicated the dead System Lord's insignia. "I believe that Bastet attacked, and probably conquered this world long ago. Assuming that the Goa'uld Bastet held to the mores of the earthly religion that followed, her temple at Bubastis and the like, her affinity for cats would make such beings an utter delight to her."

"Sounds reasonable. What's that got to do with this place?" Tenbaum asked as he strode towards the group.

Monroe resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Instead she turned to Ashley. "Could you be a dear and fetch me that last book I was reading?" She then turned back to Godfrey. "Don't you see? This woman is a descendant of the people who lived here."


	4. Chapter Three

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Rated M for some language and mature themes and some off-screen violence. My apologies to any German speakers if I got the language bits a teensy bit wrong. Google Translate is not always the best. On that note, some of the things expressed here are NOT my opinions, feelings or anything of the sort. My apologies if anyone is offended, but sometimes one needs to tell the rough stories, no?**

**DISCLAIMER: Stargate, Stargate SG-1, and its related characters and setting are not my property and I'm only borrowing them for a little while for some free entertainment. No infringement is intended.**

**Chapter Three**

Lynn let that declaration sink in for a moment while she watched Ashley rooting around on the floor for the book she had asked for. Returning moments later, Finn handed the book to Monroe who began to hurriedly flip through pages. Striking upon one, she showed it to Godfrey. His eyes quickly flew from the page to the Jaffa and back several times. There was an image on the page, its colors nearly washed bare with age, of a large gathering of creatures. All of them seemed to look much as this Jaffa. In the picture's background there hovered a great pyramid shape; what could be nothing other than a Goa'uld mothership. Emblazoned upon the ship was a more proper rendering of the crude marks on the floor; the symbol of Bastet.

Running his fingers through his militarily short hair Godfrey muttered, "I'll be damned."

The Jaffa, for her part, seemed very interested in the conversation, though she understood none of what was being said. Nevertheless, she found her ears perking forward anyway. "Mrroff?" she uttered in askance. Monroe turned to the enormous Jaffa and showed her the image. Her reaction was explosive as she shot back several steps, stabbing one clawed finger at the book and growling harshly. In an instant weapons were trained on the Jaffa so she began to bring her staff weapon to bear upon the group again. "Kree!" shouted Monroe, honestly directing it more to her own team than the frightened Jaffa.

As expected, the Jaffa lowered her weapon, head bowed in deference. Monroe showed her the book again and the furred woman reached out to point at the unusual swirls and strokes on the opposite page. Letting loose her claw again, the Jaffa made a sharp cross-wise stroke thereby bisecting the page. Monroe nodded in understanding. "Writing. Silly me, I should have realized it would upset her." said she by way of explanation. Monroe lifted the book again, gently guiding the Jaffa's eyes to the picture she wished the other woman to see. "Are these your people?"

Leaning down to inspect the image closely the Jaffa's ears went flat against her skull, amber eyes grown wide with surprise. Stabbing fiercely at the image with one finger her grumbling speech seemed to grow erratic and questioning. Monroe nodded slowly. "Your people lived here before Bastet came, didn't they?"

The warrior shrugged, but hesitantly nodded. The nod was accompanied by more unintelligible sounds.

"Damn," muttered Godfrey. "She's obviously intelligent, but we need to be able to get her to talk; something we can understand."

"And some clothes," Finn offered.

Keltit approached the Jaffa cautiously. "Do you know any other tongues that you can speak?"

A quizzical expression was her only answer. Lynn laid her hand on Keltit's arm and addressed the Jaffa in the language of the Unas, the First Ones, "Can you still understand me?" A nod. "Can you speak this language?"

"Yes."

Monroe burst out in a shining grin of excitement. "What is your name?"

"I am called Myrrwnn," answered the Jaffa. "Who are you?"

"We come from a planet called Earth. We're what you call _Tau'ri_."

"Are you like the others?" Myrrwnn asked cautiously.

Monroe was puzzled but probed onward. "What others, Myrrwnn?"

The enormous Jaffa sighed and leaned heavily on her staff weapon. "There was another group here. Not dressed like you. They came through the Chappa'ai, as you did."

Shaking her head sharply, "No, we are the first Tau'ri to visit this place." Briefly turning to her team, Lynn told Godfrey what she had just learned.

The Major was not pleased by this bit of news. "Does she say where they went?"

"I haven't asked her yet, Major." Returning her attention to Myrrwnn, "Where are they now? Do you know?"

Myrrwnn sank nearly to the floor, resting shakily on her haunches. "My pride was tracking them for many days. Somehow they discovered this and laid an ambush for us. I was the only one to survive it. Beyond that, I do not know."

"How is it that you came to be here, Myrrwnn?"

"We were hiding. Hiding from the metal insects. Our Goddess had forsaken us months before and our forces could do nothing to halt the insect's advance. Our world was about to be over-run so what few of us we could gather left the world behind. We have been seeking a new home ever since."

Pausing to think for a moment, Monroe tried to puzzle out what Myrrwnn meant by 'metal insects...'. "Replicators!" she burst out in English. Gathering her thoughts once more she continued in Unas, "You were hiding from the Replicators. All right. They, too, were defeated a couple of years ago."

Myrrwnn actually seemed to smile as she gazed up at Monroe. "I know. The power of the Gods was severely broken in many engagements with these unholy beings. With our Goddess gone, my pride knew that no other God would search for us. We were free for the first time in many years.

"There had been legends among my people of the First World, the place from which we had come, but none of us could remember it. We were told by the priests that this was nothing more than myth; we were created by the Goddess to serve Her; to do with us as She pleased. That was before she...died; too far from her sarcophagus to be revived to her glory." Myrrwnn finished and rested her head awkwardly on arms that she had crossed over her knees in a very human gesture of weariness. For many long minutes Myrrwnn would speak no more but, if the furious battering of her tail against the wall behind her was any indication, Myrrwnn was clearly upset about something.

Monroe filled in her team on this new information. Godfrey was getting restless. Staring out what remained of the library's windows, he could see that the sun was going down. "All right people, it'll be getting dark out soon. We're going to stay here for the night. Lynn, I'd suggest that you keep our guest company and learn what more you can from her," Godfrey was very clear to emphasize the word 'guest'. "She's obviously in a bad way from the looks of her. These 'Others' she spoke of have me a bit nervous. We ought to try to find them.

"Wally, Ashley and I will sweep the perimeter. Keltit, stay here and keep an eye on the Doc and our new friend here. And try to get her something to wear." The Major noted with some slight annoyance that the petite linguist was translating as he spoke.

* * *

><p>The room was large, and hot. An almost constant buzz of activity had permeated the hallways and offices for the past two weeks. No one was certain what, exactly, was going on, only that the Secretary General seemed to have some strange new motivation. That was not entirely true; there were persons at this table who <em>did<em> know what was going on but weren't sharing with the rest of the class.

It was obvious to Saren Momarr that at least three of his colleagues on the Security Council knew. Several member Embassies had been particularly busy; the United States, the United Kingdom, and Russia among them. Even the German embassy was aflutter, though the nation had not been a member of the Security Council for at least five years.

That was about to change, however. The time had come to shuffle the ten temporary seats and several countries, Germany among them, were clamoring to have those seats made permanent. But that would not be resolved today. Today the Secretary General had chosen to call a special session of the Security Council to address them on what he had called a "world altering issue"; whatever _that_ meant.

The time for the Secretary General's appearance was drawing near and the room had begun to settle to a more subdued murmur.

Doors at the far end of the room opened slowly and the new Secretary General strode in confidently. Momarr harrumphed. Confidently, indeed! More typically the superior swagger of an American; the first American to ever hold the post. It was widely known that this American was merely filling in the remainder of the former S-G's term after an unfortunate debacle between North Korea and the United States had led to the Secretary-General's assassination.

Momarr watched the man's swagger carefully, or was he simply imagining that swagger? He decided that he was. The Secretary General, accompanied by two United States Marines (graciously provided for the U.N.'s security) approached the podium that sat in the open space of the table. The Marines left the Secretary General to walk the last five steps to the podium alone. Gingerly setting down the folder he carried, notes for his speech no doubt, on the podium the Secretary General calmly cleared his throat before beginning to speak.

His deep and husky voice resonated well in the room and many of the translators were unneeded since nearly all of the Security Council's members were fluent in English. "Members of the Security Council," he began, "I have come before you today in light of several recent developments that have come to my attention these past two weeks.

"I realize that it is not customary for me to address this body in this manner and further that I am but a placeholder to finish out Secretary General Ban's term. Nevertheless, what has come to my attention affects us all. Not as any single nation, one more so than another, but as a people; human beings all."

The room fell utterly silent as the Secretary General paused a moment. "I was recently visited by a high ranking member of the United States Air Force, the culminating of a joint proposal by several members of this very Council." Several members visibly squirmed in their seats. The Secretary pressed on, "In this meeting with General O'Neill it was revealed to me, and thusly to the United Nations as a whole, the existence of a clandestine operation within the United States military, in conjunction with several other nations, under the heading 'Project Stargate'.

"This Project Stargate, under the command of General Henry Landry, has the not inconsiderable task of exploring the galaxy in an effort to meet new cultures as well as to assess any potential threats to the security of Earth; to combat such threats when they are found. For the past twelve years this Project has been running, without our knowledge or the knowledge of the general public, and I assure you that such threats have been found."

Another pause as the Secretary took a sip of water near at hand, allowing the Security Council to mutter amongst themselves in astonishment. "I now direct your attention to the view screen we have set up for this meeting." The lights began to dim while the Secretary continued to speak, "Several years ago an explosive phenomenon was observed and recorded by numerous astronomical outposts in the Southern Hemisphere. This is what they saw:"

The view screen burst to life with a series of still images, as seen from the surface of Earth, depicting a glowing yellow string reaching out from the surface. It was followed by numerous large explosions. "Yes, we have seen all of this before, Mr. Secretary." That was the representative from Canada, a rather cold woman and a fierce advocate of her country joining the five permanent seats.

The Secretary smiled, though in the darkened room none could see him. "I know. But our satellites recorded more. Much more. Observe, please."

The screen changed to a motion recording that revealed several enormous craft over the planet's south polar region. Three of these ships were pyramidal in shape, disgorging hundreds of smaller vessels. Fighter craft of some type, it seemed. These fighter craft began to streak sharply toward the planet surface while the larger vessels opened fire on Antarctica. As the stunned Security Council watched the battle unfold a new ship began to rise swiftly from the surface. It looked to be heading straight for one of the larger pyramid ships, belching missiles and vomiting projectile fire so ineffectively against its larger opponent.

Then, from the surface, a bright flash and the yellow streak returned. It reached out from the planet's surface, engulfing only the enemy vessels. When examined closely, one could see that the streak was not solid, but rather composed of thousands of small squid-like things that the Secretary quietly identified as 'drones'. These drones pummeled the pyramid ships into dust, leaving only one ship (the _Prometheus_, he called it) and its accompanying fighter craft.

As the lights came up every expression in the room was virtually identical; unbearable shock. All eyes turned accusingly toward the representative from the United States who, for his part, looked every bit as surprised as the others.

"That," the Secretary continued, "was what the SGC has taken to calling The Battle of Antarctica. During that battle we successfully defended Earth against the invasion forces of an alien calling himself Anubis. There have been many such battles over the past twelve years."

"What is this SGC you refer to?" inquired the Brazilian Councilor.

The Secretary General launched into a lengthy and detailed explanation of the Stargate, the SGC and all that pertained to it.

* * *

><p>Returning to the interior of the library, the sun having left the sky blackened and star-filled for nearly an hour, Godfrey smiled to himself as he watched Monroe and Keltit conversing quietly with their new friend Myrrwnn "How goes it, ladies? Learn anything new?"<p>

"I'm afraid not Major." Monroe replied somberly. "Myrrwnn doesn't know anything more of these others than she has already told us. She did, however, mention that they did not speak as we do, but that shouldn't be surprising if they aren't from Earth." The linguist shrugged, unwilling to surrender to failure. "I'll keep trying sir, but really Myrrwnn is quite frightened." Lynn stood carefully, stretching to work out some of the kinks that had settled into her back and legs.

Godfrey pondered. Sighing, he asked, "What's got her scared?"

The linguist looked from her commanding officer to the dejected looking creature they had befriended then back to the Major. "Myrrwnn has nowhere to go, Major. And no way to get there, apparently. The cargo ship that brought her pride here was damaged fighting the Replicators and was destroyed in the crash."

While this conversation was taking place, Tenbaum and Finn were busy rearranging some desks to make room for their nightly camp. "So what do we do with her?" Tenbaum inquired rather huffily.

Keltit made her thought crystal clear. "We should help her get back to her people. The planet from which her pride came has no Gate, Major. That is why they fled by ship."

"She could stay with us, sir." Ashley chimed in.

Godfrey seemed to mull this over for a moment. He looked at Monroe questioningly. "Do you think she would, Doc?"

Monroe looked down at the Sekhmet. "She might. Myrrwnn seems to feel certain that her people think she and her pride to be long dead now. In short, she's not expecting a rescue. I suppose we should ask Myrrwnn what she wants." Immediately, she crouched down beside Myrrwnn and began a hushed talk in the tongue of the First Ones.

The sound of slow, deep breathing permeated the entrance hall of the library as the team slept. Well, almost all of the team. As each member succumbed to the excitement of the day's events, sorting and filing the information they had learned, one restless soul lay awake. Try as she might, turning first this way and that, Ashley Finn could not find solace in sleep.

Words of the day before, once spoken, had found root in her mind and would not let her go. Rolling onto her side, Ashley stared at the Tok'ra's back. There was obviously more to their presence than the rest of the team knew. Finn felt certain that she ought to confront them, Keltit and the Major, about this. It wasn't healthy to be keeping such secrets from the rest. The team was getting along incredibly well so far. Secrets could only serve to undermine the trust that was rapidly building.

Faintly whispered words intruded upon Finn's thoughts. "Is there something on your mind, Sergeant?"

Startled, Finn gasped and realized that she was now staring at the Tok'ra's kind eyes. "I...um.." was all that she could stammer at the moment.

Keltit offered a sweet smile to the girl and motioned towards a far corner. "If you'd like to talk, that is." Rising silently at Finn's somber nod, Keltit led the girl to a desk that seemed on the verge of collapsing at any moment. As the Tok'ra settled their weight against the edge of the desk they could tell that Ashley was frightfully nervous about something. "What is it?" Keltit softly asked.

Slumping into a nearby chair, Finn sighed and gazed up at Keltit's host. Her eyes were filled with questions though she knew not how to ask them. "Well, I was thinking about what you said last night."

"I thought you might be."

Ashley hung her head. "But I don't really know what it is that I want to ask. I mean, I have a million questions."

"Ask away, dear." came the gently urging voice.

Looking back up, Finn found herself seeing past the face Keltit now wore; past the skin, muscle and bone and had the sudden sense that she was seeing _her_. The symbiote, entwined around her host's spine, pulsing and breathing. Ashley realized that she could almost see, in her mind's eye, the myriad of microfiliments that pierced and entangled in Durann's synapses allowing the snake-like symbiote to interact with the world around her. A look of wonder came over Ashley's youthful features, her mouth held agape as she took in the beauty and elegance of the being. "Wow. For the first time, I think I'm just seeing you, Keltit."

For her part, Keltit was slightly surprised. She raised one hand to rest lightly on the back of her host's neck. The place where she lay. "You mean..."

Finn nodded. "_You_."

Keltit let her hand fall. "I'm surprised. So few even bother to try to see past the face of our hosts. That is," she smiled again, "when they aren't mistaking us for Goa'uld." Her smile quickly faded. "I suppose that's one reason why people have such a time dealing with me when I'm in a male."

"What do you mean, Kel?" Finn inquired.

"As you know we symbiotes are, as a rule, asexual. The exception being, of course, the Queens. They are female through and through, with all the accompanying drives that go with it."

Finn nodded, her eyes lighting up as she made a sudden connection. "You mean you're a Queen!?" she quietly exclaimed. Seeing the simple nod that was to be her answer, Ashley pressed on, "And you're talking about breeding, aren't you?" Another nod.

"My brothers would see me kept, and kept well I would imagine, but kept just the same. Kept segregated and safe from harm. Nature abhors a vacuum as they say, and I am but one of a precious few who have been found who are of the requisite sex." Keltit said flatly. Finn was stunned. It was written plainly on her face. "The others have allowed the Tok'ra to secret them away to replenish our numbers. I do not wish such a life for myself."

"I don't blame you." Ashley admitted. "A gilded cage is still a cage. So you have no desire to make any little Tok'ra?"

Keltit chuckled, staring out into the dim moonless dark. "I didn't say _that_. I certainly do, just not right now. I want to understand your kind better. Humans, I mean. I will one day be asking your people to house my offspring. I feel that I really ought to know what makes you tick, and I can't learn that being held as breeding stock by my own people. But the desire is there, I assure you."

The pair fell silent for a long time. At last Keltit spoke again, "My offer has intrigued you, hasn't it?"

"No sense in denying it, I suppose," Finn responded. "Yes, it has. I guess I'm kind of young to be so concerned about babies, but I've thought about it a bit myself. That kind of got put on hold for my career. First woman in the Pararescue and all. I'm a little surprised that they let me come to the SGC at all, really." One look at Keltit's face showed Finn a very sharply unspoken 'why?'

"Because," said Ashley with a heavy sigh, "I was supposed to be the poster girl for the new military back on Earth. Real feminist kinda stuff. You know, 'anything you can do, I can do better'." Finn shrugged. "Not like there haven't been women in high stress jobs in the service before me, but my job is so physically intense that the brass wouldn't allow women. Until me, that is."

"Something for which you should be extremely proud, my dear."

Finn smiled. She really did like this Tok'ra. Why was she getting to know Keltit like this though? Did it have something to do with the symbiote's question the night before?

"Oh I am, believe me," came Finn's quick reply. "In a way, I'm kinda glad that I don't have to get trotted out for stuff. Getting turned into some feminist symbol or something. Not that I don't sympathize, because I do; it's just that..." her voice trailed off suddenly.

Resting a gentle hand on the young woman's shoulder, Keltit asked, "What is it?"

"I worked really hard to make the cut in Pararescue, dammit! I put up with an awful lot of bullshit in training. I'm not exactly a big girl, you know? I had to be twenty times tougher than any of the guys in my training unit, and ten times harder than any woman in the military anywhere."

Keltit nodded slowly, understanding. "And you feel as though you've had to sacrifice some of your femininity to accomplish this." Finn's answering nod was filled with a sorrow that touched Keltit deeply and brought tears to her eyes. "That's absurd, dear. In the brief time that I've known you, through our training as a team and even here, you've been nothing but your own self. I'm proud to have the chance to know such a fine and talented young woman." The Tok'ra shrugged slowly. "Men will be men, after all and their egos can be so incredibly delicate. More to the point, they are frightfully jealous of us, the fairer sex, and what we can do that they never can."

"Do you really think so, Kel?"

"I know so, Ashley."

* * *

><p>It was good to be home, sharing again in the familiar sights, sounds and smells of the new Fatherland. That was the foremost thought on Klaus Werner's mind as he stared out over the streets of Neuberlin. The light of an early dawn was cresting just over Mount Himmler, some two hundred kilometers distant. Below the man, where he stood upon his apartment's balcony, the streets were just beginning to awaken as people shuffled to and fro in an effort to begin their work day.<p>

Werner was not certain that the adjustments between times, here and the various planets he had visited, would ever be something to which he could become accustomed. He, like so many of the population, had been born here in Neuberlin, and so took the planet's twenty-eight hour rotation quite for granted. Even many of the older members of the Party, who had emigrated here from the original Fatherland, had managed to adjust very well. It was a credit to the Aryan race that they were so adaptable.

Not like these pathetic natives, skulking and reptilian. It surprised Werner greatly that, although the beasts seemed content—pleased even—with German rule, the Party had not decided to do away with them. They were a blight on the face of the Fatherland and every good Aryan knew it.

Still, the creatures were intelligent, so far as they could be, and served the Reich well as a working class-doing all the dirtiest, foulest jobs that no self-respecting German should be made to do. Even without the idea that the creatures were an undesirable class within the Reich, they were repulsive to German eyes, squat and...alien. Gangly limbs were directed to their work and often to many different tasks at once. The creatures' brains were so unlike a proper German's that it was nearly incomprehensible to the Reich that these beings could even think, let alone reason. _Perhaps someday,_ Werner thought, _the Reich will find wisdom in eliminating these creatures from Heaven_.

Sipping gently at the cooling mug of coffee in his hand, Werner turned back into his apartment to dress. Somewhere, across the great city, their finds were being studied and examined by the Reich's top scientists.

As he dressed in his casual duty uniform, Werner found his thoughts lingering on the wheeled monstrosity they had found and the group of humans he had seen through his scope. The device had to belong to them, did it not? If that was the case, was he wrong for having not reported their presence to his commander, as he should have done? Giving his head a sharp shake, Werner decided that there was nothing to be done about it now and proposed to himself that he would remain silent. For all the Reich knew, the device was a probe, a bit of flotsam thrust out upon the galaxy and never meant to be recovered. That seemed a bit silly to him, and tactically unsound, but he could know nothing different.

Werner closed and locked the apartment door behind himself and proceeded down the stairs to the ground floor. As he stepped out into the brilliant morning sun, he smiled. It would be a good day.

* * *

><p>"This way," intoned the Jaffa in her silken voice. She stood high upon a ridge that overlooked a lush, dense jungle sprouting from the city's edge. Shielding her eyes from the glaring sun overhead, Myrrwnn looked back at the Tau'ri and the one who, by all rights, should be her new God. The Jaffa was further confused by the Tau'ri's use of pronouns. Myrrwnn assumed it to be no concern of hers, but as she understood biology, her God was male, but the Tau'ri often referred to the God as <em>she<em> or _her_.

_Why might this be?_ The Jaffa wondered, intensely thoughtful. They all seemed a good sort, and they welcomed her openly, despite her pride's cowardice in the face of the Replicator's onslaught. She paused for a moment to stoop and examine the remnants of pavement for sign of her new, or rather old, quarry. A masculine voice from behind accompanied the shadow which spilled across her vision. "Find anything?"

Myrrwnn turned from her crouched position to gaze up at the one they called 'Major'. Myrrwnn slowly rose to her feet, balanced by her constantly shifting tail. "Nothing of consequence, but the others did pass this way. It was, perhaps, six days ago." The man nodded to her, all conversation still passing through the mousy, dark-haired woman. The tongue of these folk was strange, and Myrrwnn felt that she might be able to learn it in time. For now, she was still limited to speaking with, and through, her God(dess?) and the dark-haired one.

"All right then," said Godfrey. "Let's keep moving." He looked over his team as they began to march once more. His five, plus the Jaffa, made for a pretty nice sized team. Maybe the largest in the SGC. If they could convince Myrrwnn to stay, that was. Allen found that he pitied the woman, lost and alone on this planet for months; she had watched her entire team get slaughtered by these "others". It had to really be messing with the Jaffa's mind. Never mind having stood by and watched her Goddess get eighty-sixed by a bunch of mechanical bugs. Godfrey had to admit that Myrrwnn seemed pretty together for having been through all of that in so short a time.

From what Myrrwnn had said, it would be some six hours from the city to the research facility where her pride had tracked the "others". Godfrey had found himself pondering, over the hours since Myrrwnn's pronouncement of the other group, who this other group might be. While he knew there were a great many human civilizations in the galaxy, courtesy of the Goa'uld, many of them were still not so technologically advanced as Earth. Even those that were tended to stay in their own backyards, avoiding the idea of using the Stargate themselves. Maybe the Langarans had finally pulled themselves together? Who knew, really. Godfrey was eager to find out.

* * *

><p>"Belinda!" The call came from her workroom door, so loud and sudden as to make her jump. Her pliers hit the concrete floor with a ringing clang and Geller stooped shyly to retrieve them. The voice from her doorway was quietly laughing. "My apologies, Belinda. I had forgotten how deeply you enjoy your work."<p>

Furious and flushed with embarrassment, Geller wheeled around and glowered at her superior officer. "Major Werner," she coolly greeted him. There was no need to get onto his bad side when she was clearly at fault for not securing her workroom beforehand. She distracted herself by brushing behind her ear a tuft of hair that had recently freed itself from her ponytail.

Werner smiled to the young woman, then inclined his head toward the monstrosity that had enthralled her and Sonntag for the past three hours. "Do you have any idea what it is yet?"

Geller shook her head uncertainly. "Nothing clear, Major. It seems to have recording equipment built into its chassis the likes of which, naturally, I've never seen. I would venture to guess that it is a probe of some kind." With her pliers Geller prodded the small cylindrical device perched at one corner. "This would seem to be a camera, but that seems so improbable given the minute size." The young woman gave a small sigh and set the pliers on the thing beside her and crossed her arms. Her deep blue eyes chased between the thing and Werner several times and she leaned her hip against it. "In all honestly, sir, I'm not certain that the device can be made to serve us; short of being a curiosity. Not for a few years, at least."

Werner digested this information with a stony expression, his arms crossing in mirror to Geller's. "The General would still like to see the thing at least. The Oberstleutnant is with him now, so you'll have another half-hour to play with your new toy until he arrives; give or take."

"On the contrary, Major. I am here now."

It was Werner's turn to jump as both he and Geller came instantly to attention, right arms curled in a standard military salute. The heavily uniformed General returned a lazy salute and strode into the room, Oberstleutnant Marx in tow. "As you were," he gruffly commanded. His eyes were firmly affixed to the probe. "I've just heard your report, Fraulein Hauptmann, and find it disappointing. These are cle-," the General's voice cut off in a gasp as his eyes fell to one of the discarded access plates that leaned against one wheel. The words themselves were so innocuous, but those two words seemed to drain all the color from the General's face. "_Mein Gott!_" he declared. "Have you any idea what you have found!?"

Spinning on his three junior officers, he asked again with a louder voice. All three shook their heads in unison. The General carefully grasped the filthy plate and held it for the others to see. "'_No step_'. That's what this says. It is _English_!"

The three others in the room could not have been more befuddled. The MALP, their dismantled prisoner, could not have cared less.


	5. Chapter Four

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Rated M for some language and mature themes and some off-screen violence. My apologies to any German speakers if I got the language bits a teensy bit wrong. Google Translate is not always the best. On that note, some of the things expressed here are NOT my opinions, feelings or anything of the sort. My apologies if anyone is offended, but sometimes one needs to tell the rough stories, no?**

**DISCLAIMER: Stargate, Stargate SG-1, and its related characters and setting are not my property and I'm only borrowing them for a little while for some free entertainment. No infringement is intended.**

**Chapter Four**

Had they the energy, the team might have cheered when Godfrey called for a rest in a small clearing that had opened abruptly before them. He was mildly amused to see that in addition to most of his team being in only their uniform tee shirts, Myrrwnn had completely forgone the jacket they had offered her. He shouldn't have been surprised. The jungle was hot enough without a full-body fur coat.

Without being asked, Tenbaum and Keltit made a brief perimeter sweep and declared the area secure. Too exhausted for much conversation, the team settled near the center of the clearing. Godfrey looked over at Monroe, hoping that she was faring as well as the rest of them. He was pleasantly surprised that she'd not complained once during the three hour trek so far. _English stoicism, _Godfrey thought with a smile. He had begun to wonder if Myrrwnn really knew where she was going, but decided to give her the benefit of the doubt. After all, she seemed to be fitting in fairly well with his team and a blatant show of distrust would disincline the woman from returning to Earth with them. This line of thinking had the unfortunate side-effect of reminding Godfrey about their check-in schedule. The major checked his watch and found that they were indeed a bit overdue. However, he felt that the existence of these 'others' here warranted a proper and immediate investigation.

Again, as it had been for every rest that he had called, the team broke into its smaller groups: he, Tenbaum and Finn found themselves walking the perimeter as Keltit, Monroe and Myrrwnn sat chatting. Godfrey hoped that the Jaffa would be able to speak more directly to the team without having to resort to translations from Monroe. Then again, he thought, that is part of what she's here for isn't it? Shaking away the thought, Godfrey sauntered up to the trio with an affable smile. "How goes it, ladies?"

The three all looked up at Godfrey with weary faces. Myrrwnn flicked an ear, as though shooing away an annoying insect and spoke, "Vrry well, Maydgoor." Her voice was stilted and uncertain, but it was clearly English. "Lnn has tawt me soom of yous speaking."

Godfrey couldn't help but to smile. "That's great, Myrrwnn Sounds like you're doing well with it. Keep up the good work."

"Major!" Ashley's call from the far side of the clearing was enough to make most of the team jump, as well as quite a few of those bird-creatures. As one, the team took to its collective feet and converged on Finn's position. "I was looking for a place to take care of our trash," she began innocently, "when I found this." She pointed to the ground and all eyes followed.

Beneath their feet was a small mound of recently disturbed ground. Monroe tentatively poked at it with the toe of her boot which earned her a sharp word of caution from the military types. "Just because it doesn't look like a mine doesn't mean that it isn't one, and this sure as hell looks like one," Godfrey scolded. "Still, we're not on Earth, so it probably isn't. Wally, you and Kel check this out and make sure it isn't going to blow up if we start digging at it. It could be nothing; it could be something. I want to find out."

Kel was the first to speak up. "There is no discernible presence of naquadah, Major, so it is unlikely to be anything of Goa'uld origin; and far too fresh to be left over from the invasion anyway."

"Naquadah is far too precious to be used in a mine, Kel." To say that the rest of the team was a bit surprised to hear Tenbaum speak would be an understatement. "I'd seriously doubt it would be wasted like that. Besides, the resulting explosion of even a tiny amount would practically make the thing a strategic weapon, not a tactical one. Not to mention it is, as you said Kel, too fresh."

Wally continued to report to the Major, "There was evidence that this site was used for an earlier encampment, sir. Off hand, I'd say this here might well prove it; we're clearly on the trail of the Jaffa's 'Others'. If Finn thought this would be a good place for a trash pit, what are the odds that they did too?"

Godfrey had to give the man credit; his logic sounded pretty good. The Major watched as Tenbaum, without awaiting permission, unslung his pack and dug out his entrenching tool. Silently, the man began to dig at the mound, hurriedly shoving aside pile after small pile of dirt. It was hard work in the nearly sweltering heat of the jungle, and he was soon running rivulets of sweat from his brow.

"Pay dirt!" cried Tenbaum as his tool struck something with an audible crunch. Monroe nearly squealed, begging the gruff airman to move carefully lest some significant find be damaged beyond research. Following her lead, Tenbaum set aside his shovel and began to excavate the artifact with his bare hands. Within moments he tugged free what looked like nothing so much as an empty can of Spam. Passing the thing off to their linguist with a wry and triumphant grin, he stood and brushed dirt and dust from his BDUs.

Monroe turned the metal can over and over in her hands, her brow furrowing ever more with each careful twist. "This...this simply can't be, Major."

Godfrey leaned over to get a closer look over Monroe's shoulder at the mysterious object. He could not in all honesty say that he wasn't puzzled as well, but hardly for the reason that Monroe was about to give him. "Sir, it's this writing. I'm quite ashamed to say that I can't read it, though I have seen enough examples. Major, this writing is German. That's not all, folks. Major, Captain, look at this." With that she turned the can to better face the men who came in closer to look at the design Monroe was pointing out. The figure was a stylized, very angular looking eagle atop a braided bar, and a wreathed circle. In the circle was a symbol that sent shivers down every Tau'ri's spine.

The symbol was a swastika.

* * *

><p>The General was nearly frantic, though still reeling from the shocking discovery that he had, himself, made. The discovery which he was even now reporting to his superior. "Ja, mein Herr. The writing upon the monstrosity was clearly English. It has not been so long that none of our people can remember the look of it."<p>

The man sitting across from the General, the man whose office this was, simply nodded. "It is good, Herr General; both that this discovery was made, and more, that it was made here. Better such surprises come to us on our own ground, rather than in the field-coming face to face with an enemy we'd long thought put behind us, ja?"

The General could only nod his own agreement. "It can only mean one thing: Heaven's Gate has been reopened on Earth. We can go home."

The other man raised a placating hand. "Wait, Jurgen, wait. That is not the only thing that it means. Think upon it for a moment. Does it not also mean that the Gate is not in the possession of our glorious Reich? I daresay that it does. We _must_ find and capture one of them who came with the probe.

"There is more to this than we can at once see, my friend. Go and see what more your people may learn from the thing." The old man heaved a weary sigh. "It is a pity what they did before leaving the planet. Stupid, really. That planet could have been claimed for the Reich and Marx should have known that. Additionally, we might have returned there to see if any of these English remained."

The General looked up with sour eyes. "Marx did what he felt to be in the best interests of his command. If any Allies remain there, they are not going anywhere, Herr Generalfeidmarshal, and the planet may still be claimed for the Reich. With your permission, I would like to dispatch the _Rommel_ at once. It will take them only a few days to reach the planet through hyperspace."

For a long moment, the old man pondered this option. It was true that the Devils and their so-called Gods had been cast down. So, too, had the strange, pale-faced priests that came in the wake of the aliens' destruction. At last he nodded his approval. "The _Rommel_ may be spared for two weeks; no more. Your AG-1 will return with them."

The General was at once upon his feet, at attention; his boot heels snapping smartly together. "It shall be so, mein Generalfeidmarshal." He made a swift salute, then turned on his heel to exit the office. At last his panic was beginning to subside, only to be replaced by a new emotion which crept across his weathered face in a wolfish grin. Anticipation.

Stopping at the desk of his superior's secretary, a lovely little blonde girl (goodness, but could all this blonde become tiresome?), the General made quick use of the telephone. He called first his own base to recall AG-1 to duty-a briefing in one hour. As he spoke to his own underlings, he ordered them to make certain of the _Rommel_'s combat readiness. She would be leaving within the day.

Next he called his wife to tell her that he would be home late and that she should not wait up for him.

* * *

><p>"Now hold on, Wally," Godfrey intoned gravely, "I think we can say with relative certainty that no one from Earth has been here before – German or otherwise." He stared at the tin in his hand as though it were a serpent ready to strike.<p>

Tenbaum was, for his part, most agitated by this evidence. "How do you explain it then, Major?" His tone was nearly petulant in its challenge. "We're not blind. Everyone can clearly see that...that damned _thing_."

Resting a hand upon the Captain's shoulder, Monroe offered in a soft voice, "Yes, we can see it. The fact remains that it cannot possibly be there. It didn't come from our Earth..."

Godfrey caught the implication swiftly, "Wait. _Our_ Earth? You aren't saying this could have come from some alternate Earth; one where the Axis won the war? Are you?" The small woman's shrug did not offer him any comfort. He looked upon each of their faces and saw only anxiety there; those to whom any of this held any depth or meaning. Casting the offending wrapper aside, his bearing became stiff and his voice slightly stern. "Look, we can sit around and debate this all we like but it isn't going to change a thing. What's more, it doesn't alter the fact that we've got an alien facility to explore in the morning. It'll be dawn again in another twelve hours, so let's table this until we get back."

Everyone nodded, even Myrrwnn, though Monroe stooped to gather up the wrapper and stuffed it into her pocket.

The night passed in relative silence, the existence of that _thing_ having disturbed nearly everyone, the team quietly broke camp. Tents were diligently packed away, the fire pit was buried. They took their trash with them. The pall of their discovery kept everyone on edge and even the cheerful twittering of morning birds could not ease them.

Ablutions and rituals completed, the team stared at the entryway. Once, it had been roughly hemispherical, and constructed to blend almost seamlessly with the surrounding jungle. Now, great chunks of earth been forcefully dislodged; what metal could be seen about the door had been twisted brutally and there were scorch marks. Wally voiced what they were all thinking, "They didn't take the time to find a proper way into the facility. They just blew down the door." Having no evidence to the contrary, Godfrey simply decided to let that pass.

Stepping to the entryway, Godfrey shone his light into the pervading gloom within. As soon as one would step inside, the evidence of a natural world vanished, giving way to smooth, clean machine-worked metal. Walls, floors and ceiling, all was a uniform gray and unmarked by any writings or devices that he could distinguish. The corridor stretched out for some thirty feet, he estimated, then turned left. The ceiling was pocked with two parallel lines of what looked to be lights, broken and long dead, recessed into the metal itself. "Okay," he said, turning back to his team, "it's going to be dark in there. Myrrwnn, you can probably see better than the rest of us. If you'd take point, I'd appreciate it. I'll go second, followed by Monroe. Kel will bring up our six. Let's go."

Their orders made clear, Myrrwnn nodded smartly to Godfrey and hitched up her staff. Stepping through the twisted remains of the doorway, ears swiveling rapidly to catch any sound other than the enormously loud humans following behind her. Cautiously, the group traversed the short corridor, tiny lights dancing along the featureless walls and floor. Ten feet past the first turn, the discovered short stairway leading down. Having no other real option than to return the way they'd come, Myrrwnn led them onward. What had struck her most was a distinct lack of sound or odor. The place felt completely dead to her.

Proceeding along this lower corridor a ways, they came to a junction that branched left and right. Their lights revealed an array of doors lining each path. Careful examination of three revealed them to be sleeping quarters, housing two to a room. Beds arrayed one to each side of the small rooms were accompanied by a pair of desks that were cluttered with detritus and covered by centuries of dust. Unable to contain her curiosity, Monroe stepped toward one of the desks and took up what looked to be a picture frame, its image obscured by an age of neglect. She raised the item to her lips and blew across the surface which sent up a small cloud of dust – but not quite enough to reveal the item's secrets. She drew from her hip the utility knife that she carried and gingerly scraped the edge along its surface. Slowly peeling away the layers of dust, Monroe at last came upon the image, a man and a woman grinning at the camera, their arms thrown casually over the other's shoulder. Large eyes with vertically slitted pupils stared back at her and she could not help but become ecstatic. Brandishing the image as though it were the most profound thing in the universe, she called for Myrrwnn. The large feline's steps were as silent as the facility itself, her footprints the only evidence of her passage. Monroe held up the image for her to see, beaming, "Look!" she cried. "Proof that your people came from this world. Major! Major!"

Godfrey cam bursting into the room in a huff, admonishing the linguist to keep her voice low. Monroe waved that away with an exasperated sigh, "Major, no one had been here for several hundreds of years, possibly several thousands. I very much doubt my shouting will awaken something."

A snorting giggle rose from behind Godfrey and Tenbaum, who both turned to see Ashley snickering away, "Doctor, you really shouldn't say things like that. Don't you ever watch monster movies? You _never_ say that because it always makes the monster wake up. Then the screaming starts."

Godfrey had to smirk at that himself, turning back to Monroe. "While I'm in serious doubt there are really any monsters here, that principle's kind of the same, Doc."

"Oh, fine." Monroe smile and lowered her voice to barely a whisper as she showed to the rest of her team the picture she had found. "Now we know for certain, Major. Myrrwnn's people were from here, and they were at least as advanced as ourselves."

The major gave her a dirty look at the whispering, but nodded as he examined the photograph. After a moment's thought, he handed the picture back to Monroe, "Put it back, Lynn. Now we know. Put it back."

Frowning deeply, Monroe complied and gave Myrrwnn an apologetic look that the larger woman did not seem to understand. Setting the picture back upon the desk where it was found, Monroe turned to follow the others when Myrrwnn's hand upon her arm stopped her. Looking back at the furred woman, Monroe smiled warmly to see Myrrwnn thrusting the picture under her nose. "Pleeese," she mewled. Monroe stared deeply into Myrrwnn's liquid eyes and was moved to take the photograph from her and hide it in her own pack. "Thahnks yoo, Lynn."

They continued on for some time, occasionally peering through a random doorway only to find that it led only to another empty room. Each room was austere and impersonal as the last. Perhaps, Finn suggested, these were maintenance staff quarters. Monroe scoffed gently at that and responded that they were more likely akin to a medical doctor's "on-call" rooms in a hospital, where the scientists might retreat for much needed rest but were only permitted a few, most basic personal affects.

At last, they came to a pair of large, metal doors. As gray as the walls they were a part of, they looked quite heavy and possibly had been sealed at one time. Upon the wall next to these doors was a roughly circular hole, scorched black around the jagged edges and laid on the floor was what appeared to be the control mechanism. It was clear that the doors swung in both directions as evidenced by the swaths of encrusted dust that had been scraped away from the floor in their passage.

Just as the team was about to pass through the doorway the ground shook with a terrible upheaval and, even as far underground as they were, a muted thump was heard by all. Puzzled faces looked to each other for reassurance and found no answers there. "Maybe that was normal for this planet?" offered Wally. The others stared, incredulous.

"No, I think that may have been something else, but we've no time to check now," Godfrey replied. "Move on."

* * *

><p>The decks were cold, he noted as bare feet were forced from the warm cocoon of his bunk aboard the <em>Rommel<em>. It was the incessant beeping of the inset wall clock that had awakened Werner and he scowled at the evil device. _Who the blazes invented that damned thing anyway_, a sleep-fogged mind groused as warm feet were again introduced to an ice-cold deck. _And_, he spat, _why the hell can't we have carpets?_

Pushing these ungracious thoughts aside, Werner made his way to the head and proceeded with his morning routine. Three days his team had been stuck on this ship, the pride of the Fatherland, named after one of the greatest military minds of the last generation. Rommel's tomb was a point of great pride for the Unterfuhrer, and all good Germans were expected to visit at least once in their lifetimes. Indeed, though maintenance of the tomb was a menial task, it was considered too important and too...holy so it had been decreed that the labor classes were not allowed to even view the tomb.

His thoughts were disturbed by another annoyed buzzing, this time from the comm unit near the door. "Major," the voice commanded imperiously, "Report to the briefing room in ten minutes." Werner grunted an acknowledgment that the speaker never heard and shuffled over to the bed, his mind more swiftly coming to alertness. He gazed down at his bunk and pondered making it neat – these naval types couldn't stand an unmade bed, he was sure of that – and stared at the back of a blonde head. "Uta," he softly intoned. "Uta! Wake up. We're expected for a briefing."

Sonntag rolled over, her left arm rising to drape languorously over her head as she blinked sleep from her eyes, "Karl, what?" she slurred from her half-conscious state. In her roll, the thin coverlet had traveled down her body to expose a small but pert breast. He averted his eyes as he answered. "The captain just called down and 'invited' us to a briefing. Get up." He turned away as Sonntag sat upright, the cover now falling completely away from her body and revealing her toplessness. He found himself wondering what they had been thinking, getting involved. But there were so few truly pure Germans that it was their duty to breed more. That Uta was attractive, eager and fierce in bed did not displease him. Though technically against the regulations, he was certain there was at least a tacit approval, if not a measure of jealousy, of the pairing. He scowled in her general direction and proceeded to retrieve their clothing from the floor and separate her uniform from his.

Once dressed and presentable, he found himself most annoyed at Sonntag's insistence at fussing with his uniform. She had taken half the time and looked twice as good. He took her hands firmly, but kissed them to soften his annoyance, looked at her and wordlessly nodded. The pair walked out from the small quarters together and turned left down the gunmetal gray corridor. He noted that Sonntag was fully professional now and made no move to sentimental foolishness like holding his hand. He felt a pang of sorrow in that. They dodged a few crewman as they made their way to the briefing room. The doors parted and admitted them into a moderately sized room, dominated by a long, narrow table and accompanying chairs. The table was of dark rosewood, as were the chairs, and on upright poles flanking the most ornate of them were the flags of the Reich and the German navy. Already there were several officers present, including the captain of the _Rommel_, Josef Kronburg, and his own commanding officer. The pair stepped into the room and at once came to attention, saluting their superiors.

"Ah, good. You are here. Sit, please," the captain offered them genially. Without further preamble, he continued, "As you know, we are returning you to A10-12-G. We are four hours from arrival."

Werner and Sonntag exchanged a look as well as the rest of the team. Marx was the next to speak, his tone was hard and matter-of-fact, "The Rommel will remain in orbit for three days, while we search the ground for any evidence of the probes former owners. Perhaps they return to gather their machine, and when they do we will be waiting for them. Gather what you need from the ship's stores while you can. We will have little communication with the ship while on this mission."

At this point, Geller spoke up, "Sirs, as eager as I am to see the beings who created that monstrosity, may I ask how we know they might return? After all, we destroyed the Gate."

Marx grinned. "Perhaps our explosives did not do as much damage as we expected. Maybe they were discovered and removed before detonation? A hundred things may have prevented the Gate from being destroyed as we had planned, Fraulein." He addressed the rest of the team as well, "Besides, all our evidence further points to the planet being otherwise deserted, and it is beautiful. One part of our mission is also to begin establishing a base from which to claim the planet for the Reich."

A puzzled Werner spoke up, "But, sirs, our efficiency for such a task is greatly reduced by the loss of the Gate. Why bother with a backwater three days away by hyperspace?"

Geller smirked at her obviously ignorant superior officer, "We have been studying the Gate system for many decades, Major. It is a simple matter of locating another Gate and its corresponding Key, then moving them." She looked so smug as she corrected him, "That done, all we need do is to open a portal to Neuberlin and the system will automatically correct its location in the database. Whoever built these things was, indeed, quite brilliant." She looked to her superiors with a triumphant gleam in her eyes. "I even know of a Gate that we might use."

Both officers appraised the ambitious young woman with skeptical eyes. "Explain, Fraulein Hauptmann," grumbled Marx.

Given now her perfect opportunity, Geller pressed on with boisterous enthusiasm, "Sirs, In some of our explorations, we have come across several mentions of a planet our computers designated U38-13-9B or, as these records have shown, Tollana. It seems that there may have been two planets with such a name, but we only need one. According to our research, one of these planets was destroyed in a great cataclysm and the Gate now awaits us; unguarded."

"My, but that is clever, Hauptmann. Very well." Oberstleutnant Marx stood, causing his team to rise as well, "If that is settled, make what preparations you need. We won't be enjoying the _Rommel's_ comforts again for a while."

* * *

><p>It had not taken them terribly long to locate the main lab, a generous affair with a multitude of relatively advanced equipment arrayed about a cavernous room. At one end there stood a small platform and a set of clamps set against the wall. There were cables snaking hither and yon from several computers only to end abruptly at the nothing which the clamps held. Early tests showed that there was no longer power in the facility, to none of the computers could be turned on for study.<p>

Like everywhere else in the facility, the walls were of a dull gray tone and the computers were generally bland, with no visible means of input. Also like everywhere else, there was a patina of dust crusted over everything...except one place where many feet seem to have huddled for some time. In the center of this flurry of ghostly footprints, a blurred square patch of bare floor could be seen that seemed to match quite closely to the bases of the other computer devices in the room. Godfrey looked over the array of dead machines and heaved a resigned sigh. "Wally, if you had a generator, do you think you could get these going again; find out what they were being used for?"

Tenbaum shook his head slowly. "No, Major. I think whatever went on here is long finished."

"MAJOR!" blurted Ashley from a far corner near the bare patch. "Guys, come see what I found!" Her tone was nervously excited, and easily drew the others to her position. There, upon the floor sat a squat device, roughly cylindrical in shape. From it came a number of cables, some of which were still connected to one of the dead computers. Several of the computer's panels had been removed, exposing its guts to the empty world. Tenbaum crouched in front of it and peered inside and declared that several components looked to be missing.

Finn nudged the cylindrical thing with her foot and jumped back as it thrummed to life, bleeding a menacing ocher glow. It pulsed and hummed, but that seemed all the device was capable of doing. Kneeling beside the thing, she noticed that it was not covered with dust like everything else, and said so. "Uh, guys? I think I know where it came from."

Peering over Finn's shoulder, Monroe gasped as the infernal symbol was again displayed, revealed by the now glowing device. Muttering a curse, Monroe turned back to Godfrey and nodded, "It was them, Major."

Tenbaum moved from the computer to the German – they knew no other way to think of it – device. He, too, swore bitterly, then followed that with a muted and sardonic chuckle. "It's a generator, sir. They'd brought their own power source, like we'd bring a naquadah generator."

"Can we use it?"

"Sure thing, sir. It's built by humans, after all, and fairly antiquated ones at that." Tenbaum offered up a feeble grin and set about to tinker with the generator. Opening a small side panel, the generator's warm glow grew brighter as its inner core was revealed. "Oh," he said. "Look at this. It looks like they use slightly modified staff weapon power cells, bound into a tightly packed staggered array, so that no single cell is used for more than a few minutes, giving it time to recharge."

"That's nice, Wally,"Godfrey grumbled. "Try getting it plugged into one of these other computers and see if we can get one running."

* * *

><p>The striking patterns of blue, green and violet turned slowly before them as the <em>Rommel <em>inserted itself into orbit. Within moments of achieving orbit, the pride of the Fatherland expelled a number of smaller vessels. Three were small, agile craft with wings swept back in a delta configuration. The fourth was larger and slower, drifting lazily toward the surface, its escorts buzzing frenetically about it. All at once, one of the smaller pointed its nose downward and streaked toward the planet's surface while its companions settled into flanking positions to either side of the larger craft. Minor chatter spattered the radio waves between craft and the great ship.

Trails of fire and smoke belched from behind them as they careened through the atmosphere, hurtling ever closer to the surface. The roar inside the larger craft was terrible and rattled Werner's head. He looked closely over his teammates, each securely fastened into their landing chairs. Hull vibrations were violent but blessedly brief, and the pilot announced that they were now well inside the atmospheric envelope and would be landing in a few minutes. Werner was already bored.

Sonntag, on the other hand, was quite radiant as her excitement shone clearly through her. She was still young yet, and had not tasted the bitterness that this life held in store for her. The losses and disappointments that would plague them all for as long as Heaven's Gate was used. The Devils had been defeated a generation ago – none now dared to set themselves against the Reich, he thought – but that did not mean the galaxy was now empty and ripe for the taking.

No, he thought amid the dissipating roar of engines and atmosphere, she will know death and despair in time, just as we all have come to know it.

A final vehement rattle of the drop-ship jarred them all, making Geller squeak in surprise, then the ride settled into a smoother whispering descent. Marx was then unfastening himself and barking orders. Two minutes later there was a soft thump as the ship settled upon the surface, a thrumming whir as the landing gate lowered. _Here we are again_, thought Werner sourly as he gazed out into the violet foliage; rather, what was left of it. As the team piled out, they were at once struck by the devastation at their landing site, a great gaping crater where the Gate had once stood. For a kilometer in every direction there was nothing but a flattened expanse of nothing.

Airmen were now unloading their base camp equipment and supplies and looking for all the worlds as though they did not envy AG-1 their assignment. The sun was high in the sky and the lack of available shade made it very hot. Marx was kind and allowed the team to remove their duty jackets while setting up the camp. Everyone welcomed the relief. While the tents were being pitched, Marx was speaking into his radio and informing Captain Kronburg that they had landed and all was well.

Within an hour, their supplies off-loaded, the landing craft's escorts offered the team a salutatory fly-by and streaked for the heavens as the lander itself slowly rose from the ground like a lumbering behemoth. The team waved amiably to the pilots and began to settle into their new accommodations for the next several days.

* * *

><p>Tenbaum grumbled. Having to work with this piece of technology offended him at his very core. He'd heard the tales of his great-grandfather, an officer of the Wehrmacht stationed in Poland in the 1940s. He had seen no fighting – at least, not on the front. The "prisoners" had, occasionally, been a different matter. The family had worked hard to wipe that stain from their name, and now to be shown evidence that the horror not only continued but had even moved out into the galaxy-at-large disturbed Wally on psychological levels he had not previously been conscious of. He wondered, as he pulled at various wires and cables on the generator device, if the hatred that had fueled that desperate period of German history still held true. He prayed that it did not, but knew in his heart that it did. What was a Nazi without his hatred? A thug. Well, he corrected himself, they're certainly thugs <em>with<em> it, too.

At last finding the port he sought, he plugged one of the cables into an awaiting socket. Something within the computer's guts buzzed and the screen flickered drowsily. Monroe grinned. Ramping up the power slowly, Lynn marked off their progress and the alien machine came to life. He admonished her still not to touch anything; Wally wanted a chance to poke around the alien computer some himself. For all they knew the scientists had booby-trapped their equipment. Monroe scoffed at this and pointed to the other machine, the one with part of its memory core missing. Though with any luck, she said, the inhabitants had left some sort of back-up of their work here.

Tenbaum grumped, but nodded his agreement with her as he examined the now active screen interface. Symbols scrolled along the bottom like a news ticker, and along the right side there were other symbols which Monroe commented were not letters or numbers. Her chin was practically resting on his shoulder. Emblazoned across the rest of the screen was an image that they all knew just as well as the thing on the generator: concentric rings enfolded by nine chevrons, the inner ring sectioned and inscribed with thirty-nine non-repeating symbols. A Stargate.

Monroe whooped, which made Wally flinch. The Englishwoman blushed – it was a pretty blush, he noticed – and apologized to Tenbaum, her smile soft and imploring. Turning away from him she called to Godfrey, "Major! We've found something!" Godfrey paused to excuse himself from Durann, with whom he'd been speaking, and was quickly replaced by Finn. The major stepped over to them with renewed vigor and seemed glad that some progress was finally in the offing.

"What have you got...oh!" Seeing the Stargate so prominently displayed on the screen, even if it was just an image and not a video feed of the 'gate itself, was promising. "So the gate was studied here. Nice."

Monroe experimentally prodded one of the static symbols on the screen and was met with a brief flash and a grinding crunch from within the computer's casing. More symbols scrolled up the screen and seemed to be a running account of...something. The information was passing too swiftly for Lynn to decipher, but the group of symbols along the right side of the scrolling were clearly numbers. "Maybe it's a status read-out?" she offered helpfully. As she spoke, the scrolling came to an end and the last line worried her; she was not alone in this. The last line said very clearly: "Device Not Found".

By itself it meant nothing, Wally reminded himself, but he was certain that the others were thinking it, too: what _was_ that quake earlier? He shrugged and touched a different symbol on the display and the screen became a video feed – of nothing.

No, not nothing. There was the sky, and the treeline beneath it. Chunks of jagged stone lay strewn about a large, blasted area. The ground was black, charred by a great heat. What grass could be seen at the edge was wilted and burned. "Not found" the computer had said. Now they knew what it was looking for – the Stargate. The Stargate that wasn't there.

But the area was far from empty, either. At the left edge of the camera's view was something black; not stone. Not burned. It was flat and billowing lazily in a slight breeze. Wally examined the screen and thought he had found camera controls. Pressing one, the camera nudged to the left. He pressed again and, again, the camera's view shifted. Holding the button, the camera panned to the left until they could all see the small encampment. Several small tents and one larger one dominated the view, and people were seen milling about. As they watched, two of the people, a man and a woman, stopped and spoke with each other. The blonde woman was leaning rather close to the man, and they seemed to be speaking amiably.

They were dressed alike, in matching gray uniforms of impeccable cut. A striking and impressive image the pair made, resplendent in their uniforms. At the collars were patches of two straight bars, and along their shoulders seemed to be epaulets of some sort. The man's left side was to them and they could plainly see that he wore an armband of some sort, though its details were obscured by distance. The dominant color of the armband, however, was not. It was a deep, rich red, and nestled in the center was a white circle encasing a black doodle of some kind. Tenbaum spat a vehement curse. "Wehrmacht," he said darkly. "They're goddam _Wehrmacht_!" Cursing again, he turned away from the screen. He couldn't look any more.

The others looked more intensely at the offending image, Monroe poking at the camera controls and finding one that zoomed the view. She nodded and confirmed Wally's assessment. The uniforms were clearly of 1940s German origin, virtually unchanged in sixty years. Their equipment, however, was another matter. As Monroe panned and zoomed the camera about the camp, she spotted various pieces of equipment that made little to no sense in the context of a Nazi encampment. Then again, she mused, there was not much about a Nazi encampment on another planet that made much sense either. Still, here it was and none of them could deny it.

Myrrwnn crouched in one corner of the room, isolated from the rest of the group who seemed so enormously bothered by these other humans. Her own ire was rising, and she considered abandoning her new companions. The murderers of her pride had returned and their blood cried for vengeance. But what then, she asked herself. The chappa'ai was gone, and she was not capable of fixing...

Rising to her feet, Myrrwnn strode to the others and loomed over them. Tapping Lynn upon the shoulder, she mumbled something in the tongue of the First Ones, "There is another way," she said. "The chappa'ai was not the only way off the planet, and our enemies do not know of it."

Just then, her ears flattened and her gaze turned upward. In the distance, there was a swift and intense roar. It was coming this way. Their enemies knew her friends were here, and may possibly be looking for them. The scent of animosity was thick in the room, and she smiled. _Those who would crush your enemies are worth knowing better_, the old adage went; but her friends did not seem to be in a crushing mood today. Except for Wally. His scent was different from the others. His spoke of a great rage and an underpinning of shame. This entire matter was affecting him, personally, as though it was his fault that these other humans were as they were. She did not understand the particulars and, so, could not try to comfort him. Best to allow the other humans to do so.

The Goddess, on the other hand, was as detached about the affair as she was herself. Keltit stood slightly away from the group and merely observed. She caught Myrrwnn's look and held it a moment, sharing the Jaffa's puzzlement.

The sound was growing nearer by the moment. Myrrwnn took Godfrey by the arm and pointed to her ear, then upward. The male's face screwed up in concentration and Myrrwnn suddenly realized just how handicapped these people's hearing really was. "Airship," she claimed, "Approach fast. Maybe two."

"You can hear that even down here?" Ashley was asking, her tone dubious. The humans' credulity lasted only a moment more before the muted roar of jet engines screamed overhead. "Oh," was Finn's only apology.

Godfrey was a flurry of motion, speaking rapidly. "Time to go, people."

"Go?" Monroe asked. "Go where, exactly? You saw for yourself that the gate is gone."

Standing tall, Myrrwnn spoke up, "Ship. Crrrashed but," she pointed to them, "can fix?"

For the first time since the Germans had been seen Wally spoke up, his voice low and dragging, "How much damage, Myrrwnn?"

The Jaffa could only shrug helplessly. "Hull not broken." She stood a bit taller, having been the pilot. "Controls broken."

Godfrey decided, "Fine, that's where we'll head, then. They may know we're here. They may not. Better to not find out by staying moving. Pack up, folks. We are leaving."

* * *

><p>Marx smiled as he watched Werner and Sonntag chatting. Yes, they were getting along quite well, though it might mean a transfer for one of them. Which one, he wondered. Sonntag was a lovely young woman and more than dedicated to the cause, he knew. More than that, though, Uta was the best damned demolitions expert in the Korps. Still, Werner was his second-in-command, and as such deserved some consideration. It amazed Marx to think how high Werner had risen in the ranks when he considered how little dedication the latter showed to the Party. Oh, Werner was a fine Aryan and an honorable man, but Marx was sure that his underling could be convinced to give himself more to the Party and its goals.<p>

On the other hand, Marx mused, the man _is_ out here with us. He is exposed to the same risks as the rest of us. Not three months before, they had run afoul of some odd device that seemed determined to change Werner into something else entirely. Something reptilian. It was horrid. Revolting, actually. The incident had progressed so far that the man's eating habits had altered quite significantly. It had been utterly disgusting. Werner had been very fortunate that the Ausgehend's physicians had been able to reverse the effects, a tribute to the Reich's superior learning.

His musings were interrupted by a buzzing in his earpiece, "Oberstleutnant Marx, we have picked up several life-signs in the vicinity of the alien laboratory. They seem to be underground now and moving."

Marx scowled. Unlike the Devil's planes, after which the Reich's fighter craft had been designed, theirs were unable to mask their engine noise at all. The roar of jet engines still rumbled through the air at their passing. He supposed that such a sound might strike fear and terror into the hearts and minds of those lesser beings who might have the misfortune of hearing it, but he cursed the lack of engineering wherewithal it took to make them silent. A craft like that would do wonders for night-time attacks and other times, like this, when one did not particularly wish to announce ones presence. But, he lamented, our engineers have remained baffled.

In any case, it seemed that the planet might be once again inhabited. He clicked his radio and called to the pilot, "Can you tell what it is?" He frowned at the negative answer. Marx would not take the six hour march to the facility only to find themselves chasing a wild hare. "Very well." Switching channels, Marx called to the _Rommel_, "Marx to _Rommel_, come in."

A voice fuzzed by static replied quickly, "Rommel here. Go ahead."

"Your birds picked up a few life readings in the vicinity of the alien facility. If you would be so kind as to bring your considerable sensors to bear upon it, we might learn if it is worth investigating?" He flattered the behemoth and her captain shamelessly.

After a few moments the voice returned, "Six life signs, sir. Four register as human, one alien and," the voice paused. "One of the Devil's gods, I think."

Marx nearly let out a whoop of victory but cautioned himself. Now was not the time. The disembodied voice from the heavens was saying that the group was moving quickly and had already exited the facility, heading southeast. Marx called out to his team, commanding that they be geared up and mustered in three minutes. In those three minutes, while was himself gathering gear, he was getting direction and bearing for an intercept of these aliens. It was estimated at three hours. That was much better. He advised the ship to keep her planes well away from their quarry for the loud engines would alert them to the German presence if, indeed, it had not already done so. The team did not disappoint him, appearing before him in a rush and ready without a single question in their eyes.

"Our mysterious guests are abroad, and we will be meeting them here," he brandished a crude map of the surrounding area and pointed to a small ravine. "They are tired and far from home. We are strong and fresh and have the _Rommel_ to support us. Move out!"

* * *

><p>Monroe was panting heavily by now, being still slightly unused to the grueling pace her military friends were setting through the thick jungle. Her jacket had been left far behind, leaving her only the tactical vest and tee shirt. The sun was high in the sky, midday, but she could not tell through the dense canopy above her which only served to hold in heat and humidity. She paused for a brief moment, catching sight of Myrrwnn crouched upon a low branch and looking for all the worlds like the predator she was.<p>

Godfrey had placed Myrrwnn on point, leading the way, with Keltit to the rear. However, in their furious pacing, things had become a little more jumbled. Lynn dared a sip from her canteen, then plunged on after her companions. She thought back to what had started this mad dash, what the airmen had determined was a low flying aircraft of some sort. Being underground still at the time, they had no way of knowing the plane's origin. It could have been Lucian Alliance or any of a number of splinter groups that had sprung up in the wake of the System Lords' collapse and subsequent Ori invasion of the galaxy. However, the major seemed convinced that it was a conventional jet engine, but _not_ belonging to the vaunted F-302.

Ashley came back and grabbed Lynn by the arm and pulled her along, "Come _on_, Doc! Those planes could be back any time and we've still got two hours until we reach Myrrwnn's ship."

"Oh god," Monroe whimpered plaintively. "Two hours?" She despaired of making the entire journey at this pace.

"Get a move on, woman!" Ashley barked, her face flushed and streaked with sweat. The young woman's breathing was also very labored, Lynn noted and immediately felt ashamed of her whining. She silently apologized which was accepted with an equally silent nod and the pair plunged onward.

Soon after, the jungle began to thin, and the air less oppressive. Sunlight dappled the ground as jungle gave way to crumbled pavement, mostly shattered by the slowly encroaching march of nature. It did not take long at all for the team to find themselves standing at the edge of a ravine where, judging by the pylons standing like silent guardians of a forgotten past, a great bridge had once spanned. The bridge was now a collapsed ruin, its stones scattered about the base of the ravine as the only other marking it had even existed. The way down and, conversely, the way back up the other side looked treacherous in the extreme. Godfrey surveyed the possibilities and chose a route that would take them to the left side of the nearest pylon on their right. After allowing the team a short break of only five minutes, they began.

He cast his gaze upon the faces of his team as they carefully picked their way over crumbling pavement. His first mission off-world and already it was a wash. Guilt and responsibility weighed heavily upon Godfrey. It was his fault that the gate was gone, blown up by apparent lunatics. Yes, there was only one reason to destroy the gate like that: to strand them here. Godfrey could not even be certain that a rescue was forthcoming any time soon.

The way was treacherous, even in good light. Unstable. And the light wasn't good. Even now, the local sun rushed toward the western horizon as though it were late for a party with one of the planet's three moons. Godfrey's heart nearly stopped every time he heard one of their feet slip, sending a cascade of rubble tumbling down the slope they now traversed. There was another. Wait...

A sharp crack made Godfrey's head snap around in time to see Durann's eyes go wide. Weapon dangling uselessly at his side, the large man's arms pinwheeled as the pavement beneath his feet gave way. Snapping nearly clean, the small outcropping that Durann had chosen began to fall. Godfrey yelled, reaching futily for his teammate. Finn arrived too late as well, grasping only empty air. The pavement cracked once more, overbalancing Durann and sending him pitching forward down the ravine.

Feet over head, the Tok'ra tumbled downward amid skittering and rumbling stone. They yelped in agony as collision with a jutting stone snapped the man's shin nearly in two. The others could tell by the way his hand flailed that the wrist was likely broken as well.

It took less than a minute for Durann to reach the bottom of the ravine, only to find that it wasn't the bottom at all. Slamming heavily into a morbidly cracked portion of pavement, it gave way and in a moment he had fallen, shrieking, out of sight.

What caution there had been was cast to the wind as each rushed to the bottom as swiftly as they dared, and to the hole that had swallowed their friend. Myrrwnn, being the most agile, arrived first. She howled in anger, her expression one of excruciating guilt. Godfrey was right on her heels and peered over the edge of the crevasse. "Dur! Kel! You all right?" He listened for a moment. If either had answered, he could not hear it over the arrival of the rest of the team. After getting the rest to quiet he called again. Only a quiet moan rose from the hole. "Hang on, buddy. We'll get you out of here."

"No, Major. Our wounds are too great. Do not risk the mission for me," Kel pleaded softly over the radio.

Lynn could not even bear to hear such a thing. Not on their first mission together! "We won't leave you!"

"My host is dying. Please."

"Major, we're losing daylight." Tenbaum's expression was grave. He faced west, then looked back at his team. It was clear in his eyes that he did not wish to say what needed said, but said it anyway.

Godfrey was hearing none of that. "Dammit, Kel! We need to get you out of there!" He looked among the others and saw the same determination in their faces. In fact, Myrrwnn was already starting to climb into the hole to retrieve the Tok'ra. "Whoa, girl! No sense losing two of you."

"I get," the Jaffa defiantly declared. She growled firmly to show her resolve to the others. They would not stop her.

The major could do little but nod. "All right, but wait a minute. Sergeant, let's get some line and give her a hand."

"I've got line and a stretcher, Major. We'll get them."

Grueling, sweaty work it was to descend into that crevasse and the evening air was still and oppressive. Myrrwnn trusted not in the human's rope and slunk her way down carefully and with all the grace inherent in her people. Finn was not so confident in her own ability, and would have a loaded stretcher to bring back with her. With the line tied off and the others playing it out in careful measures, Finn dropped over the edge, repelling easily to the bottom. Even so, the Jaffa was there first.

Finn was no doctor but Pararescue had taught her a little more than just the basics of field medicine. At first glance, the Tok'ra looked in a bad way and this is what she quietly reported to Godfrey. Both arms were severely broken and one leg in at least three places. There was no telling if the man's spine was damaged and there wasn't yet time to ask. Finn administered a morphine shot, and tried to fit a bracing collar about Durann's neck. Myrrwnn was crouched nearby, one hand upon the man's shoulder and purring softly. Every so often, bits of rock and steel would rain down from above them where the others peered into the darkness.

_Dammit, don't die on me!_ The chant played over and over again in Finn's mind. But she knew. The best they could do was to make Durann comfortable and not let him die in this hole in the dark. With only a flashlight trained on Durann, Finn worked as best she could to splint what breaks she found. Durann was bleeding from numerous gashes and...oh god, a rusted steel bar was actually running through him, protruding from his chest. She could not tell at once if it was attached to anything but her companion.

Just then, she felt Myrrwnn tense, could nearly hear the Jaffa's ears lay flat against her skull. The growl she heard was clear as a bell, however, as was the tightening grip upon her staff weapon. "Hurrrry," she rumbled to Finn as she rose. There was a flash of amber light and the well-known _hiss-chunk_ of the Jaffa's weapon being primed. "Blood has been smelt, Finn. The Goddess must be moved."

Increasing her speed as much as she dared, Finn retrieved the stretcher from her pack and unfolded it. "Give me a hand with him." She looked up into the Jaffa's incredulous face. "I don't care what you smell, Myrrwnn. If you want me to hurry, give me a damned hand!" She heard the weapon snap closed and set aside. "Thank you," Finn said softly as she readied to grab the downed man's shoulders. "Get his feet. On three. One...two...three!" With a groan, they lifted Dur and settled him upon the stretcher. The shock dragged a shriek of agony from host and symbiote alike, the dual tones of Keltit's pain searing into both women's hearts.

Myrrwnn growled fiercely, taking up her staff weapon once more and priming it. "Predators come swiftly."

"I know, I know!" Finn paused only to wipe sweat from her brow, then hastily resumed securing Durann to the stretcher. She called up to the surface on her radio. "Major, we may have company down here. They're in a bad way, but they're secured and ready to be hauled up. Myrr and I will hold off whatever is coming." With that, she spun about, bringing her rifle to bear. Stepping to the Jaffa's side, she smiled.

"Go," the Jaffa murred. "I will cover." Her entire body was set as if stone. Nothing would move her. Her tail flashed from side to side, flicking and swishing in eager anticipation of coming battle. She could already hear the approaching pack. Letting out a small sigh of relief, she risked a glance over her shoulder to see that Finn was withdrawing.

Waiting until Finn was halfway to the surface again, Myrrwnn let our a roar and let loose three blasts into the ceiling with her staff. Satisfied that the resulting collapse would delay the predators, she closed the weapon and dashed deftly for the opening above.

Both Finn and the Jaffa settled upon the ground, Durann between them. Finn was doing her best to stall what bleeding she could. There was really very little that she could do. Tears welled in her eyes even as she worked, frantically denying the inevitable. She did not cease until a half mangled hand closed gently about her own bloodied one and a quiet voice spoke, "Thank you, Ashley. I owe you my life." Bright, clear eyes turned to regard the rest of the group, then came to rest upon Godfrey. "Major, we still cannot go on. Durann is beyond my ability to heal without aid." It was clear that Godfrey was about to protest and Kel shook her head. "No, Major. There will be no miracles today."

The major did not wish to accept this as truth, but knew there was no denying it. "You need a new host, don't you?"

"Yes."

"Shit."

"Yes." The Tok'ra offered a weak smile, blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.

Godfrey heaved a heavy sigh and stood, looking dourly upon his team. "All right, people, here's the deal: Durann is far too hurt for Kel to heal him so she needs a new host, pronto."

"Not a chance," Tenbaum said almost at once, scowling. His expression was as inscrutable as it was brief as he quickly turned away from the proceeding.

The Jaffa shuffled nearer to the stretcher. Again, she rested a taloned hand upon the wounded one's shoulder and said in a low, clear voice filled with sincere devotion, "I offerrr myself to the Goddess Keltit."

Keltit smiled warmly to the Jaffa, and laid her hand atop the others. "Myrrwnn, your offer is gracious and I am flattered. Your grace and strength would serve us well, but I feel that such service would be better used on your own. You know, also, that Jaffa do not make good hosts." It brought her to tears to see the woman's face fall, fleshy ears drooped in disappointment, but Myrrwnn bowed her head. She was hurt by Keltit's words but could only accept the Tok'ra's decree.

Monroe and Finn exchanged a glance and, for a time, neither spoke. At last, Finn blurted, "That leaves us. Flip a coin?" She tried to smile in an effort to lighten the dour mood.

From the stretcher, Keltit groaned weakly. She stretched out her hands to the women. "Both of you have expressed some wonder and curiosity about the blending. I offer you the opportunity, now, to sate that curiosity."

"Yes, I admit that I have wondered, but...I don't know that I could..." Monroe lowered her gaze, ashamed. She glanced again to Finn and shook her head.

"I'll do it." Finn leaned nearer to Keltit, schooling her face to show no fear of what was to come. "Just tell me what I need to do."

"Come near and kiss me, then we will become one." With sad eyes the Tok'ra accepted Ashley's mouth upon theirs, a passionless joining. A feeble hand rose to rest at the back of Finn's neck and both bodies tensed. A soft tearing sound could be heard...a squeal as Ashley winced. Keltit had launched herself hastily from her dying companion and into the girl's waiting mouth, warm and trembling. As carefully as she could in her hurried state, Keltit tore through Ashley's soft palate and wrapped about the girl's spine. As Durann's body fell lifelessly from hers, Ashley choked and scuttled backward.

It was the most curious sensation, she had to note, the feeling of another body curled tightly about her spine. A crunch that was more felt than heard signaled the symbiote's head passing under her skull. And then it was...amazing.

Within seconds of the joining, a hundred thousand memories flashed through Finn's mind. Lives not her own that spanned an uneven expanse of time. She sputtered and spat blood upon the ground even as the wound in her mouth was healed. She looked to her team and felt a strange pressure within her eyes. They must have flashed. The newly joined Tok'ra stared down at her former host, touched his cheek and wept bitterly. "I am so very sorry, dear one," Kel mewled in Ashley's voice. "It was never meant to end this way." She leaned down and kissed his flaccid lips briefly, this time there was tenderness in the gesture.

Rising unsteadily, they looked again to their team. "It is done and we are well." Kel smiled wryly as she watched Myrrwnn kneel before her, head bowed – a silent swearing. She rested her hand upon the Jaffa's head and gently scratched. "Thank you, Myrrwnn, but know that you are free now. I hold you to no bond or oath of service but that of desiring friendship. Rise, please, and call me 'Goddess' no more."

Godfrey stepped forward then and placed his hand on Finn's shoulder. "Are you sure you're both all right?" He smiled thinly at the smile that greeted his question. Looking to Monroe, he beckoned her near and whispered softly to her to keep an eye on the Tok'ra and to help them. Then addressing the rest of the team, Godfrey said somberly, "We'll be back to get Durann's body before we leave. For now, we have a cargo ship to reach and night's falling fast. Let's move out."

He stopped short as a high-pitched buzz went off behind him. He swung around in time to see Ashley point her zat at Dur's body and, with three rapid discharges of cobalt energy, disintegrated the corpse. Returning the weapon to a safe state, she holstered it and turned to follow only to come to an abrupt halt for all eyes were upon her. "It was what he asked for, Major." She spoke nothing more, instead pushing her way past the others and leading the way, Myrrwnn tight upon her heels.


	6. Chapter Five

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Rated M for some language and mature themes and some off-screen violence. My apologies to any German speakers if I got the language bits a teensy bit wrong. Google Translate is not always the best. On that note, some of the things expressed here are NOT my opinions, feelings or anything of the sort. My apologies if anyone is offended, but sometimes one needs to tell the rough stories, no?**

**DISCLAIMER: Stargate, Stargate SG-1, and its related characters and setting are not my property and I'm only borrowing them for a little while for some free entertainment. No infringement is intended.**

**Chapter Five **

The council chamber was in a total uproar. A multitude of voices, each in a different language, clamored to be heard, trampling wildly over their neighbors. The news was out. Humans were not alone in the galaxy, and everyone had something to say about it – vehemently.

Only a few countries did not direct their shouts to the Secretary-General, rather trying to both explain and defend themselves against the ferocious attacks made by their colleagues. "How could you keep such a thing from us all?" the Brazilian representative demanded to know. India and Pakistan were, for the first time in seventy years, in complete agreement with each other. Iran accused Israel of plotting the entire thing, but was utterly laughed into silence. Japan, of all the nations represented here, remained astutely silent, preferring to listen to whatever details might fall from the chaos.

The Secretary-General of the United Nations pounded his gavel and shouted into the microphone before him. Failing to bring any sense of order to the proceeding, he grasped the microphone with his right hand, the metal of his watch causing a fierce feedback which squealed and echoed through the entire chamber. All became silent. "Thank you," he said quietly. "I understand that you are all upset and confused by this news, but the fact remains that it is true. The time has come when we can no longer, in good conscience, keep the existence of the Stargate a secret.

"Yes, many of the world's governments have learned of it over the years, but not all. It is the feeling of the new American President that the Stargate belongs to the world and, with the approval of the Russian president, has turned over possession of it to the United Nations for care and overall administration. In addition to this, the Department of Homeworld Security has become a truly global entity, also under the jurisdiction of the U.N. Security Council.

"There can be no denying, ladies and gentlemen," he continued boldly, "that the time has come for us, as a people, to reevaluate our place in the galaxy. Indeed, we should look also to our own home, Earth, and see that we cannot continue to be a force in the wider scope of the galactic affairs if we cannot keep our own selves in check. Looking back on our own history, both of individual nations as well as globally, it can be taken as no surprise that peoples such as the Nox and the Tollan – clearly more advanced technologically and socially than we – would choose to see us as a backward, ignorant species.

"Our staunchest allies throughout our battles with the Goa'uld System Lords, the Asgard, called us 'the Fifth Race'. _Isn't it time we started to act like it?_" The Secretary-General gave the assembly a moment to let his question digest.

A hand was raised toward the back of the chamber and was acknowledged, the representative of South Africa. He stood, speaking plainly, "If we are to be this 'Fifth Race', as you say, what is to be expected of us? Are we to surrender our sovereignty to the United Nations? Are we to give up our own governments, which have served our people for decades – in some cases _centuries_?" He looked out over his gathered colleagues and smiled before turning his attention back to the Secretary-General. "No, I do not think there is anyone in this room who would wish to accept that as a solution.

"Are you proposing war, sir?" asked Spain in her dulcet tones. "A conflagration to ultimate supremacy over the world and this Stargate? I think that you overestimate the blood-thirst of many a people, sir."

"People!" the Secretary-General called again. "What does a government need that we here do not now possess? Leadership and representation of nearly every nation on the planet is right here. Does a proposal such as we are discussing necessarily ask for individual nations to give up their rights of sovereignty? No! What is proposed, however, is a greater unity and a dedication to set aside our differences and come together as a single people; to cry out to the galaxy that we are one."

"And what of those who refuse to bow to this Imperialist subversion of national freedom?" cried the representative of Iraq. "Already the Americans occupy my country and for many years have done so. The same for Afghanistan. Will these nations be returned to their rightful status as sovereign states, or will America be permitted to keep us as puppets?"

The Secretary-General held up a placating hand, "Please! No one is saying that the issue needs to be resolved today, and certainly not without a vote from the people of Earth. _All_ the people of Earth." He smiled warmly to the assembly. "It's getting late. Let us adjourn for the night and think about this. Speak with your representative heads-of-state, and tell them what is afoot."

With a decisive rap of the gavel, the meeting was over.

* * *

><p>A full second moon shown brightly down upon the clearing in which they sat, the five companions. Ashley had been severely morose and quiet since the death of Durann, likely owing to the grief of the symbiote that now resided within her. Sitting away from the others, Ashley hugged her knees and rocked slowly, tears streaming down her cheeks. It had been so sudden and there had been no time for her to really prepare for being a host. It was disturbing her and Keltit had not spoken much since the blending.<p>

**_/I am sorry for this, Ashley,/_** Keltit offered quietly. **_/New blendings are often painful, and we grieve as deeply as any other creature./_**

_/I know,/_ came Ashley's reply. /_I just wish that it hadn't had to happen that way, you know?/_ She could feel a curious tug and a warm sensation of feeling from the symbiote. Keltit had smiled. /_When we get back, I would like to see you somehow./_

**_/That can possibly be arranged, but it will be less than pleasant. I must say that I am amused that you would want that. Most of my hosts have not bothered./_**

_/Has the galaxy really changed much?/_ Ashley asked suddenly.

Keltit chuckled. **_/I have seen only a handful of years, Ashley. No, the galaxy has not changed in any greatly significant ways in that time, though the appearance of the Tau'ri was quite cathartic. It is not often that new peoples find their way into the greater community./_** She paused a moment. **_/Particularly one as disjointed and chaotic as yours./_**

The sound of booted foot falls roused the pair from their talk. Looking up, they saw Monroe approaching with a steaming bowl of something. The bowl was offered to them as the other crouched beside them. "Here," said Lynn. "Eat something. You two need to keep up your strength." The bowl having now passed hands, Monroe rose to leave them in peace but Keltit stopped her.

"Doctor," she said quietly but with little reaction. "Lynn," the Tok'ra tried again. "Do not despair, Lynn. His memory lives still."

Without turning back to them Monroe sighed, "It's not that, Kel. It's..." her voice trailed off and she hung her head.

Keltit smiled softly and, setting the bowl aside for now, rose to her feet and placed a hand to Monroe's shoulder, gently guiding the latter around to face her. "There is no shame, my friend. Not everyone is able to go through with becoming a host, even when they are prepared. Lynn," the symbiote offered tenderly, "I am not offended. Do you think you're the first to have turned me down?"

"Turned you down? No. But I feel very much that I let you down. You were counting on one of us to help you, and I couldn't." Monroe's eyes were brimming with tears that were sparkling in the moonlight. "I just couldn't."

This was no new experience for Keltit and it showed as her hand rose to wipe away a single tear that had fallen from Lynn's eye. "There, there. No need for all of this now." She offered a meager grin. "Let it go, Lynn. You were not ready for it." Leaning close, she lowered her voice to a whisper, lending what weight she could to her next words, "I understand."

Looking into the warm eyes of her two friends, Lynn shed slow tears but smiled. Her cheeks were moist and warm with color. "Can you forgive me?"

Laughing quietly, Keltit took Lynn in her arms and hugged her amiably, "There was not, nor is there now, anything to forgive." The two remained this way for many moments and Kel could feel a sense of relief wash through Lynn's body.

But a second set of footsteps caught her attention. It seemed to have come from the right. Finn, of course, heard them too, and both symbiote and host became tense. They tapped Lynn on the shoulder and whispered to her, "We have company, I think. Get the others." Lynn nodded dumbly and turned to enter the camp.

Before either woman could move, a voice rang out in the darkness, "_Achtung! __Du bist umzingelt! Gebt euch bis jetzt!_"

The sound of weapons being primed launched them both into action. The others of their team were already springing to action. Even Monroe was ready, having drawn and primed her _zat'nika'tel_ sidearm. The voice from the darkness called out again, more vehemently, "_**Gebt euch bis jetzt!**_"

When the three women made it back to the camp, Tenbaum was scowling and Myrrwnn was already leaping for a low-hanging branch. Crouching there, her staff weapon at the ready, her eyes scanned the darkness for the owner of that voice. Godfrey was sizing up the situation as best he could; five of them in a bunch against an unknown number of enemy soldiers, probably well spread out. Had Keltit the ability to read the major's thoughts, she would agree with him. To fight now was probably not wise and she said so.

"_Senken Sie Ihre Waffen!_"

"What the devil are they saying?" Godfrey demanded of Monroe.

Tenbaum answered dourly, "We're surrounded, sir. They want us to surrender and put down our weapons." Wally was staring furiously in the direction of the foul voice. "I don't think they'll ask again."

"Fuck," spat Godfrey. "We might be able to learn a thing or two. All right, folks, give 'em up." With that, he unclasped his P-90 and set it on the ground while raising his hands. The others followed suit, though Tenbaum's eyes now nearly blazed with silent reproach.

"I hope you know what you are doing, Major," Keltit warned.

Into the clearing stepped half a dozen uniformed folk, armed with sizable machine-guns. Now, up close, there was no longer any mistaking the uniforms, nor their wearers, for anything but what they were – ghosts from the past. How this could be none of SG-1 could fathom. The German soldiers quickly secured the team and their gear, a wolfish grin upon the face of the one who was their leader. Intense chatter between their captors as they collected Myrrwnn from her tree, yowling and hissing vehemently at the impossible soldiers. The leader stepped forward and addressed Godfrey in a stilted, halting English, "I am Oberstleutnant Marx, and you are now prisoners of the Reich. But for your...unusual companion, if you behave, you will be treated well. Resist and you will all be shot, starting with the women."

Myrrwnn roared her rage at these enemies but was silenced by a swift rap across her muzzle. "Control your beast, sir," Marx said. "I will warn you only this once. Control it, or we will be forced to kill it."

"Stand down, Myrr," Godfrey capitulated. Myrrwnn stared daggers at him, but complied. The group was then forced to their knees while Marx paced in front of them. He was speaking into an oversized radio while his team finished disarming the prisoners. Ashley could feel Keltit squirm within her and winced.

_Calm down, Kel,_ she admonished the symbiote. /_The major knows what he's doing. We'll get out of this. We have no way of knowing if they even know you're here./_

**_ /Nor do we know that they don't,/_** was Kel's terse reply.

"Soon, you will all be our guests upon the pride of the Fatherland, and enjoy our...hospitality." Marx crowed.

"You don't seem so surprised to find us here," Lynn spoke up, curious. "I am, however, surprised that you would know to speak English to us. How is that..." Her question was cut short by a knock to the head.

"You will be silent!" Marx stalked off, calling to his side the male of his group. The two spoke quickly.

Tenbaum muttered to his teammates that there was a shuttle on its way to pick them up. The shorter of the German women crouched beside him, pressing the muzzle of her rifle against his jaw, and growled darkly, "Gib mir einen Grund, Hund." He fell silent.

* * *

><p>The cell was dark and Godfrey was left mostly alone with his own thoughts. <em>Balls up<em>, he thought. _That's what they called missions like this. Balls up. _Pulling himself to hands and knees, he felt his way around the small cell, marking and measuring his surroundings. He silently cursed himself for having taken French and not German in high school. He cursed himself for a lot of things in the past few...was it hours or days?

No one had come to talk to him at all, and he could not see outside his cell to tell where the rest of his team might be. They could be scattered through the ship for all he knew. There was a sudden clatter at the door and Godfrey scooted back away from it. A barrage of light flooded the room, blinding him, as shadows streamed in and took hold of his arms. The shadows dragged him to his feet and out from the cell. The journey from his cell did not take long, and his eyes were adjusting to the light by the time he felt himself slammed onto an upright table and strapped roughly to it. Blinking away the spots from his vision, the air was forced out of him by a sudden blow to his midsection.

"Well, major," came a sour voice dripping with venom. "It is time that you and I had a little chat."

"I won't tell you anything."

A chuckle, as dark and ominous as it was filled with a terrifying mirth. "Oh, but I think that you will." There was a snapping of fingers, followed by creaking wheels as something was rolled into the room and placed before him. "I suspect that this," the voice was saying, "belongs to you and that you care for it, _ja_?"

Godfrey looked down, now that his vision was cleared and launched into a furious struggle against his restraints. Before him, strapped tightly to a rolling steel table, was Myrrwnn. She was blindfolded and gagged; even her muscular tail had been clamped down lest she lash out with it. But it twitched furiously. "You bastards," Godfrey spat. "Leave her alone!"

"Ah," the mirthful voice cackled. Godfrey still could not see the owner of that voice, but he swore that he'd strangle the giddiness right out of it if given half, no a _quarter_ of a chance. "So you _do_ have feelings for this creature. How curious."

All at once, there was a face before him, springing into his field of vision like some wicked jack in the box, his bespectacled visage twisted into a rapture of glee. He seemed to be a doctor of some sort, likely a surgeon by the way he darted off to attend his instruments. He prodded Myrrwnn viciously in the ribs and observed her squirm. "The subject is most curious, indeed. I had the opportunity to study its companions earlier but they were, unfortunately, quite dead at the time."

Myrrwnn howled against the gag, gnawing at the hard rubber ball that held her jaws open. Every muscle in her body strained as she fought against her bindings. The hatred and rage that poured from her eyes spoke of pains this doctor could perhaps only dream of inflicting. He only chuckled and grasped her ear, stooping low to peer into it. "It's quite a fine specimen, major. You're to be commended for capturing it."

"Let's get this over with," Godfrey grumbled. "Where is the interrogator?"

"What?" the little doctor asked, turning to Godfrey a genuinely puzzled expression. "What interrogator? There is no interrogator." He offered a smile that sent ice water through Godfrey's veins. "No, Oberstleutnant Marx merely wished you to observe my examination of the creature." He cackled and danced a little jig toward his instruments. "Doktor Ekhart is doing the same with the other male and that most curious female of yours. The one with the thing?" he absently tapped the back of his head – right where a symbiote would reside.

"What the hell do you want from us, then?"

"Your cooperation, major." Another voice blared from all around him, piped through speakers that hung in each high corner of the room. "We know that you come from Earth. We have no wish to harm you, if you are proven to be truly human. We only wish to know the fate of our glorious Reich and the strength of the original Fatherland."

"Then you can go right to hell because your 'glorious Reich' died a painful death some sixty years ago."

"Lies!" the voice decried passionately. "The Reich is to last a thousand years! More, if our discoveries can be returned to the Fuhrer."

Godfrey grinned. "Your Fuhrer is long dead, my friend. The movement died. You're ancient history to us."

"Then you will tell us," the voice's tone grew icy, "_where is Earth?_"

* * *

><p>Ashley awoke on her back, arms and legs spread. At once, she could tell that something was horribly wrong. She was cold. Very cold. The hardness upon which she lay was freezing and felt like it might be steel. Opening her eyes, she found herself staring up into a brilliant light. Her mouth had been forced open while she'd been unconscious and a hard rubber ball inserted, held in place by a tight leather strap.<p>

There was weight at her wrists, thighs and ankles. She was fastened to the table, she knew it to be a table now. And she was naked. She knew that now, too. She was afraid. Keltit tried to calm her host as best she could, but she was, herself, growing afraid of these new humans. Unconsciously, Keltit tightened her grip on Ashley's spine, painful and made her host whimper. A flush of apologetic sorrow swept through the symbiote where she was joined to her host, as she forced her small body to relax its grip.

"Hey, you're awake," came a familiar voice, welcome through the terror.

The two-made-one turned their eyes toward the voice and Ashley blushed madly. Tenbaum was there, strapped as she was, to a table. A door opposite to him, to her right, opened and the three looked to see a man enter. He was dressed in what looked to be a heavy white surgical gown, already splattered with old blood. "Now then," he was saying in a thickly accented English, "let us see what makes you so special, shall we?" He was stalking toward an instrument tray which was subsequently rolled toward the table upon which the newly made Tok'ra now lay. With a humorless smile, he unbound the gag from Ashley's mouth and let it fall to the floor.

Keltit was frightened and angry, and she stared at the burly doctor with a brand of hatred that she'd once only reserved for the most depraved of the Goa'uld. He took a step backward as her eyes flashed brightly at him. "You would do well not to touch me, human," she declared in her most imperious voice.

_/Kel, what are you doing?/_ Ashley pleaded with the symbiote.

**_/Please, my little one. Trust me. We will not reason our way out of this./_** Keltit did her best to reassure her host that this was the best, perhaps even the only way, to save them all. Her attention returned to the doctor, "I see by your face that you understand what I am. Release me now, your Goddess, and I will be certain you are spared."

For his part, Tenbaum remained quiet but the doctor did not. "You amuse me, _Goddess_," he spat, approaching the table once more with a scalpel in his hand. "You seem to believe that you are in a position to demand anything."

Then the doctor made a fatal mistake. Realizing that his subject was one of the devil's gods, he shifted the hold on his scalpel from his hand to his mouth and reached for a set of straps. Keltit made use of every weapon she had available to her. Pouring dangerous quantities of adrenaline into Ashley's body as soon as one wrist was free, she lashed out to catch the doctor by his throat. She pulled fiercely with one arm while strangling the doctor with the hand that gripped him. There was a squeal as the moorings of her shackles came first loose, then free. Behind his mask, the doctor gasped and gaped like a fish as he fought for what little air she might allow him. He stared, imploring, into her flashing eyes.

Her other hand freed, she set to work unstrapping her thighs. The scalpel clattered to the floor. She directed the doctor to unfasten her ankles and, amazingly, he complied. Kel could feel Ashley's terror beside her, but also her elation and gratitude. Her host was begging her to kill the monster, her internal voice having taken on the tones of a small child. Kel forced the doctor to his knees and pondered him for a moment, then looked over his crude instruments. Gliding smoothly from the table to stand before him, she knew he would not last much longer without air. She obliged her host, though a ripple of sorrow flowed through her as she casually snapped the doctor's neck.

Hastily, she unbuckled her own useless restraints and then turned to release Tenbaum. Her fingers were swift and she acted wordlessly. Pulling him from the upright table, she looked about for anything she might use for clothing. "Ah, thanks," Tenbaum mumbled as he stared at the crumpled and broken former doctor on the floor.

"Say nothing of it, Captain." Her tone implied that she meant it literally, so he didn't.

They were fortunate that there happened to be a small locker inside the room, and unlocked. Within it were several surgical gowns like the doctor had worn though these were, blessedly, free of blood. Keltit grabbed one and slid away into her own mind, letting Ashley handle the chore of dressing. "Do you have any idea where the others might be, sir?" Finn asked. His somber shake of head was not encouraging. "Okay, then we'll have to find them." Tenbaum nodded and was already moving toward the door. The fact that no one had burst into the room with automatic weapons was a good sign that the door was unguarded. That, or the guards had strict orders not to enter the room for any reason.

Listening at the door, Finn frowned at the chill of her bare feet but pushed it aside. There did not seem to be any sort of sound coming from the other side of the door, so she risked the handle. It was unlocked. Letting it swing open just a crack, she peered down the corridor. It was empty. Now that the door was open, she could hear a sound from what seemed to be only a few doors down. It sounded like yelling. It sounded like the Major.

Without waiting for Tenbaum, bolstered by what she had seen Keltit do to the doctor with her own hands, Finn darted out of the room and toward the door that contained the yelling Major. She could hear Tenbaum scurrying behind her, silent. Between herself and Keltit, they were beginning to doubt the Captain's ability. It was obvious he was content to let them take charge of the situation. So she did.

Bursting through the door, she rolled, reaching out to grasp the nearest thing to hand as she came to her feet. It happened to be a long pair of hemostats which she promptly plunged into the doctor's throat. Tossing him aside like a doll, she pointed to the major while addressing Tenbaum, "Sir, if you'd grab the major, I'll get Myrr." Hastily, her fingers worked, unfastening the gag from the Jaffa's mouth. The feline woman howled and hissed at no one, gripping her side once a hand was freed. They'd flayed her right side, stripping away fur and several layers of skin. That she was naked did not seem to register to her at all. Myrrwnn's feet struck the deck and she nodded to Finn once, firmly. She was ready.

There was the sound of boots pounding down from the corridor outside. They were caught again, but this time, they were free to act. Myrrwnn and Finn took positions flanking the door, while Godfrey and Tenbaum hid behind tall, narrow cabinets. Foolishly, the guards burst in only to find themselves assaulted by an angry Jaffa and her friends.

Myrrwnn grabbed the first German by the throat and squeezed viciously until something snapped and tossed him away. Finn shoved the door into the third guard to enter. The Jaffa was already gouging swaths of flesh from the second guard's face with her claws. The guard's weapon clattered to the deck, only to be scooped up by Godfrey. Tenbaum grabbed the first guard's weapon. He wouldn't need it anymore.

Now armed, the quartet sneaked into the corridor and looked carefully. There was still one member missing and she had to be found before they could leave. Also, there was important equipment that would be required to return home. The featureless walls offered them no direction, no indication of what part of the ship they might be located. Godfrey paused and tried to envision the corridors through the blinding glare through which he had first seen them. Setting off at a brisk pace he angled left, crouched low. His team was arrayed behind him.

By now their captors knew of the escape and a wailing alarm sounded throughout the corridors. Soon, the entire section would be crawling with German troops.

* * *

><p>The blare of an unfamiliar alarm roused Lynn violently from her half-conscious state where she had drifted in the arms of a languid dream. In the dream, she was safe at home with her husband and son. Then she remembered. She'd never married. Her eyes came open into a dreadful blackness, as impenetrable as it was oppressive. Rolling onto her belly, she felt about in the blackness for anything that might give her some sense of bearing. All she found was the same bland, featureless and icy floor as what she lay upon. She dared not scoot about too much lest there be some form of drop off to one side or the other. There was a sudden sound of gunfire far to her left and it startled her. Were her friends being killed? She wailed and wished that she were with them, to die by their sides, stately and dignified rather than cowering alone in the dark.<p>

Craning her neck to stare toward where the gunfire had come from, Lynn pulled herself to a seated position and waited. It had occurred to her that perhaps, just perhaps, her team had escaped and were even now making their way to her. The door behind her rattled and was flung open. An angry voice barked at her as she was pulled to her feet and dragged away from the darkness into a blinding light. She thrashed and begged to be returned to the darkness. The darkness was familiar. The darkness was safe. The darkness was where her friends could find her. White light exploded behind her eyes as she took another rap to the head. They weren't even asking her any questions. Weren't you supposed to ask your prisoners questions?

Feet dragging along behind her, Monroe was carried along, too unsure of herself to try anything glaringly heroic. That sort of thing usually got one killed more often than working out well for the hero. The sound of gunfire was growing nearer and Monroe found herself flung to the deck, a hard soled boot pressed to the back of her neck. A harsh voice cried out in a heavily accented English, "Stand down or the woman dies! This is your only warning!"

A string of curses and regrets flooded Lynn's mind as she realized that, indeed, her friends had escaped confinement but that she would be the cause of their recapture. She wailed and thrashed beneath the boot and cried out to them not to give up. The boot ground more heavily onto her neck, choking off her bravado as she struggled to breathe. There was another gunshot and, for a moment, Lynn wondered why heaven looked so remarkably like the inside of a German starship. Then the weight of the boot fell away and she immediately scrambled toward her friends. Hands grabbed at her but were cut down even as they did so.

Once again joined to her companions, Lynn smiled to Finn. "Well, this is fun. What's next, lass? Tea and scones?"

Finn smirked and squeezed off two rounds to keep the soldiers at the end of the corridor behind cover. "Major, we can't stay here. Any ideas?"

"I'm open to suggestions, ladies."

Myrrwnn launched herself around the corner she'd been using as cover and bore down fast upon an unsuspecting soldier. The others hadn't had time to try stopping her and it was unlikely that they could have anyway, which left them only to call after her and implore her to return. Three Germans, cowering behind corners and doorways, fired blindly at the howling mass of enraged fur and claws that was clearly intent on separating them into individual pieces. The Jaffa grabbed the nearest guard by the face, claws biting deeply into his flesh, and ripped the weapon from his hands, flinging it back toward her companions. One of the Germans thought to grow a spine and rushed Myrrwnn in hopes of getting her to drop her captive. He succeeded only in receiving a muscular tail thrashing into his gut and a foot crushing his windpipe. Casting a brief glance to SG-1, she tossed her captive to them while shifting her full weight onto the German's throat. There was a satisfying crunch and the hands that grasped at her foot fell away like dead fish.

Bounding back to the team, she pounced their captive and growled fiercely beside his ear. A hand upon her shoulder did nothing to calm her. The Jaffa was nearly feral now, enraged beyond reason. Godfrey shouted at her to no avail. Even a sharp and imperious _Kree!_ from Keltit was not enough to sway the massive woman from her course of bloodshed. Only Lynn's soft words seemed to get through to her at all, "This will not bring your pride back, Myrr. Do not become like _them_."

With a disgusted snarl she stood and flung the guard to the deck, smiling when she heard his skull crack against hard steel. She turned away, scooping up one of the fallen weapons and taking position to watch while the others questioned their prisoner. "We not stay long," Myrr encouraged them.

"Gotcha," was Godfrey's reply before turning on their prisoner, a terrified youth who oozed fear from every poor in his fair skin, his bright blue eyes wide and certain that he was to die at the hands of these inhuman monsters. Godfrey leaned close to the soldier, beckoning Lynn to his side. Pressing the warm muzzle of his confiscated rifle under the young man's chin Godfrey hissed, "I do not want to kill you. Help us and you will not be harmed; you have my word. Do you understand?" The youth shook his head, though whether in answer or lack of comprehension none could be sure. Tenbaum repeated the major's words, as exactly as he could, only to be met with a more emphatic shaking of the youth's head. He was choosing the hard way. "Fine," Godfrey grumbled, hauling back on the rifle's slide mechanism. The threatening clack-snap had the desired effect, widening the soldier's eyes as comprehension of the gravity of his fate was made plain to him. Raising a trembling arm, he pointed back the direction that Lynn had been dragged.

Thinking that would be the extent of aid required of him, the youth fell silent and limp. He was mistaken as he found himself dragged along with the group. "Pointing wasn't so much of a help, young man," Godfrey patronized the soldier. "We need a bit more from you, you see...like a way off this ship." The young man did not flinch, seeming to have reached the decision that they would likely kill him in any event. A low growl from Myrrwnn only confirmed this, but Godfrey held up a placating hand. "I gave you my word, son," he offered their prisoner, reading the young man correctly. "Once we have a way off the ship, you can go. Now, where is the hangar?"

The soldier spat at Godfrey's boot, missing by mere inches. "Well, that isn't very neighborly. I suppose we could always find an airlock for you to test for us." The youth's eyes went wide again and his head fell forward in defeat. He uttered a string of vehement words which, translated through Tenbaum, turned out to be directions to the hangar bay. Hastily, they secured the lad in a small storeroom after stripping him of a few portions of his uniform, which happened to fit Ashley rather well. They made their way along corridor after corridor, following the young man's instructions. Each, in their way, prayed the kid had not directed them into a trap.

* * *

><p>They were most fortunate, however, that he did not; but the way was not easy, and twice they were nearly pinned down by enemy forces. Swiftly dispatching opposition, they at last won the hangar bay and its array of curiously unique craft. Along the left side of the bay there hung three rows of sleek, arrowhead-shaped craft whose cockpits were clearly only large enough for one pilot. Fighters. To the right side of the bay, there sat a number of strangely elongated craft, bulbous in the front and tapering to a thin tail behind. To either side of the forward section there draped a pair of turbine engines on a swivel mounting. A chopper. Godfrey grinned in spite of himself. Sixty years of isolation and they still managed to develop a helicopter.<p>

Turning his grin into a wry smirk, he dashed across the bay to look inside the thing and examine the controls. Godfrey was at once satisfied that he could pilot this craft...but would it get them to a world with a Stargate? There was no way to know. He peered around the nose of the helicopter-thing, hoping to spot something more promising. He was not disappointed. Nestled in the corner of the bay was a large pyramidal shaped craft whose lines were very familiar to everyone on the team. A Goa'uld cargo ship, and it was intact unlike Myrrwnn's hoped for egress. Waving his team forward, Godfrey's eyes scanned about the bay for any sign of pursuit. Amazingly, there was no evidence at all and this struck Godfrey as more than a little suspicious. Having been around the block a few times, he was getting a very strong sense that this was being too easy. It was too late to turn back now, though, and so he kept his suspicious to himself.

* * *

><p>"They are taking the bait, mein Herr?" The captain's tone was foul. "I'm taking an awful risk for this plan of yours, Karl."<p>

Marx merely smiled as he watched the hangar bay through a small closed-circuit television feed. "Ja, like flies to dung." Calculating eyes regarded the master of the _Rommel_ coolly. "They are too predictable, sir. If the Allies are as weak as this group, then we shall have little difficulty in bringing them to their knees."

"You believe them, then?"

Marx was flummoxed and stuttered for a moment. "Believe them!? About what? The loss of the Reich in the Fatherland?" Marx dismissed the thought with a wave of his hand. "In truth, that matters not. Even if what they say is true, the Reich endures as it was meant to: through _us_."

The Captain was unconvinced. "Surely you underestimate these folk? It would be foolish of them to fly directly to Earth from here. Clearly, they would seek a world with a Gate, and even then they would not be stupid enough to dial Earth directly."

"If that is the case, then we will follow them to the end, Herr Captain." Marx's grin was nearly as wolfish as any the captain had seen.

* * *

><p>"They'll track us. You know that, sir." Finn grumbled as she settled into the pilot's seat.<p>

Godfrey frowned but laid a reassuring hand on his medic's shoulder. "Just fly us out of here, Sergeant. Any direction other than Earth." He turned to the others and chuckled, "Strap in, folks. We're likely to be in for a bumpy ride."

"Um, I hate to be the bearer of unglad tidings, lads," Monroe offered dourly, "but how do we plan to get the doors open?" The others looked at her, rather stunned. The cargo ship had no weapons, only its massive bulk which would hardly be a match for a stubborn bay door.

Myrrwnn stood abruptly and moved toward the hatch that led out to the hangar. "Whoa!" Godfrey called, grabbing her by the arm. "Just where do you think you're going?"

"To free us." Yanking her arm from the Major's grip, she stalked from the cargo vessel and toward the nearest helojet, as Godfrey had taken to calling them. Almost at once, he knew what she had planned and he called after her, "NO!"

The rest of the team was startled by the major's outburst, and Monroe came to his side asking what was the matter; then she saw Myrrwnn climbing into the cockpit of one of the nearby craft. After a moment the craft's engines began to whine into life; the whine swiftly giving way to a powerful roar. Myrrwnn actually smiled to a hastily approaching Godfrey and pulled the canopy closed. He vaulted onto the side of the craft and beat on the canopy but Myrrwnn was set in her path. "Don't you do it, woman! I'm not losing another one!" He raised his rifle, aiming carefully as the craft began to rise from its berth. Squeezing the trigger, a shot rang out but only glanced off of the deceptively thin canopy. Godfrey's face drooped in disappointment. Myrrwnn smiled triumphantly. The Jaffa punched the throttle forward, sending the craft lurching forward and Godfrey pinwheeling off the hull to strike the deck with an audible crunch. He could only lie there helplessly watching the Jaffa, so unusual and graceful and a friend in so short a time, line up her craft with the still secured hangar bay doors.

Shouting at Myrrwnn to stop, Myrrwnn spun up the engines to a wicked roar that drowned out all else. She gazed out to her friends and waved to them. Then she punched the controls hard and the craft shot forward like a bullet. She could only hope that the rest of her team would make it back into the cargo ship in time. Bracing for the impact that was sure to come, Myrrwnn offered a silent prayer to Bastet, the real one that Lynn had told her about. A viscous crash mingled with the squeal of rending metal and the rush of wind as the bay hemorrhaged its supply of oxygen, Myrrwnn felt herself slammed forward against the displays, twisted sharply and impacting her already wounded shoulder into the altimeter.

There was a dizzying fall of stars about her and she tried not to look. It was making her nauseous. It took her a moment to realize that she was still a live. Grinning madly, she fought the controls of this beast of a machine and managed to get the wild spin into something resembling a stable course away from the bulk of the _Rommel_. Coming about in a flat turn that altered not her momentum, Myrrwnn let out a yowl of glee to see the cargo ship slipping from the hole her maneuver had created for them. She wished only that she had a way to communicate with them that they could know she was well. Gripping the stick in a massive hand-like paw, she waggled the craft, then made a full roll and righted herself in relation to the cargo ship. She grinned more to see the cargo ship waggle its wings in reply.

The cargo ship maneuvered along side her and she could see the team ecstatically grinning within. They pointed to her and the cargo ship rolled onto its side so that she could see its underside. The rings were activated but quickly shut down and the ship rolled upright once more. Myrrwnn smiled and nodded to them. She had seen this attempted once, and could only hope they knew what they were doing. After all of this, she was willing to give them the benefit of a lot of trust. Breathing out sharply several times, her eyes never left the cargo ship as it slid into position over her. Quickly, Myrrwnn strapped herself into the pilot's seat, like she'd not had time to do prior to her little stunt, then pulled on the ejection handles. There was a mighty whoosh of air as the canopy was blown from the cockpit, exposing her to the cold of space. She pushed of hard with her feet on the floor of the cockpit, getting herself rising toward the cargo ship. It was slow going, much too slow. Her lungs burned and her fur was nearly frozen. The bare patch along her side was already frosting, to say nothing of other bits of her that were not so often exposed to the elements.

At last, she saw the rings enclose her, the vibrant vibration along her body as she was transported into light and heat and air. Her massive body collapsed, unconscious but alive. She did not feel the cargo ship dart away into hyperspace.

* * *

><p>The uproar of revelation was not to die down any time soon.<p>

Headlines appeared, almost at random, throughout the world; almost all of them saying the same thing: _Aliens were very real, and we have been visiting them for a dozen years already._ They began quietly enough, these headlines, in relatively rural areas, but they swiftly spread to major metropolitan areas. The New York Times could not help but to print one of the first devastating articles: _What's a Stargate and Why Do We Need It?_

Public outcry for the expense, the deception, the almost cavalier manner in which the United States Air Force had played with the fate of the entire planet time and time again, rose to a frightening crescendo. There was no escaping the fact that the world's population was less than happy.

However, there were those folk who regularly existed on the fringes of society, usually labeled "kooks" and "crazies", who leapt and danced with glee to find all their work proven correct. There was an irony lost on no one at the SGC that Daniel Jackson, one of the founders of the Stargate program and it was often said that he was the heart and conscience of the place, was among these vindicated "kooks".

While the people of the world debated how, and even if, their world had changed overnight, governments moved as carefully as they could to enact measures that would bring about a more unified political landscape. Over the next weeks, nearly every head of state declared their support for giving control of the Stargate to the United Nations security council and, indeed, to work more closely with the United Nations as a whole to usher in a new age for humanity. Through a leak to the Chicago Tribune it came to be known as "The Fifth Race Initiative". No one really knew the significance of the phrase, but it all sounded so incredibly wonderful. Fans of a particular brand of science-fiction threw wild parties, convinced they were seeing the birth of a much longed-for government, a galactic confederation that could last for at least another five hundred years.

There were plans proposed to offer new forms of power and infrastructure to all parts of the world for, as the Initiative claimed, these discoveries belonged to the entire world to use. All of the major governments, particularly those members of the former International Oversight Advisory – now the United Oversight Council – set into motion the machinations that would retool all of their power plants to utilize the far more efficient naquadah generators. Less developed countries would be shown ways in which they could boost productivity in areas of energy and food production. Oil magnates decried the changes and feared the collapse of their massive power bases as dependance on fossil fuels were on the brink of a rapid decline.

All was not happiness and joy, however. Several minor governments, particularly those in central Africa, destabilized and collapsed, requiring the United Nations to step in and gather the disparate factions together for negotiation. It became regulation for stable governments to be in place in order to qualify for aid. The world watched with bated breath as four African nations, who had been in a state of conflict both internal and external, were finally merged into a single state and were due to have their first national elections at the end of the year.


	7. Chapter Six

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Rated M for some language and mature themes and some off-screen violence. My apologies to any German speakers if I got the language bits a teensy bit wrong. Google Translate is not always the best. On that note, some of the things expressed here are NOT my opinions, feelings or anything of the sort. My apologies if anyone is offended, but sometimes one needs to tell the rough stories, no?**

**DISCLAIMER: Stargate, Stargate SG-1, and its related characters and setting are not my property and I'm only borrowing them for a little while for some free entertainment. No infringement is intended.**

**Chapter Six**

P3X-296. Night had crept slowly across the site of the crash, and SG-1 was only now beginning to pull themselves from it. Tenbaum was the first to extract himself from the wreckage of their stolen cargo ship and looked about. Three moons shone pale overhead as well as a brilliant swath blazing across the night sky from the planet's rings. They had crashed in a fairly open field, and Wally could see for miles in every direction. Quickly noting a distinguishing landmark or five, he then set about helping his teammates.

Monroe moaned groggily but insisted that she was fine, despite the gash at her temple and a painful looking swelling of her left ankle. As she tried to stand, Monroe yelped and went down in a heap. "I told you not to put any weight on that ankle, Doc," he admonished her. "It's probably broken." Lynn just nodded mutely and sat where she had fallen.

By now Godfrey was pulling himself out from under a lean-to made of twisted metal, cursing vehemently. A small but powerful hand gripped his arm and dragged him free. Looking up, he was staring into Kel's warmth behind Ashley's young eyes. It was still going to take a while to get used to that. "I'm all right. I'm all right," he placated his nervous medic. "Check the rest of the team first, Ashe." Doing as she was told, she found Monroe and set to work on the latter's damaged ankle.

Myrrwnn was the next to extricate herself, thus completing the count; all accounted for. She was alternately whining and yowling and cradling her right arm tight to her body. Tenbaum tried to smile reassuringly to her and triage her wound. When his hand touched her shoulder, she hissed fiercely and instinctively lashed out to knock him away – but the blow never landed. The Jaffa had understood and checked her swing. "It's dislocated," Wally tried to explain to her in quiet tones only to be stared at blankly. A sharp cry from behind him could only have been Monroe having her ankle set. Wally turned back to Myrrwnn and grimaced, "I'm going to have to pop it back into place, okay?"

Staring at the small Tau'ri, Myrrwnn simply took his hand with her right one and flattened her ears. She understood. Through her grip she could feel her body tense and brace as rolled her shoulder to loosen it. Without warning he shoved in a very brutal but precise way, which rewarded him with a wet socking sound coupled with Myrrwnn's beleaguered howl of pain. He apologized to her, who only smiled and rolled her shoulder with greater range than she could before.

"Wally!"

"Sir!" Tenbaum jumped at the sound of Godfrey's voice from around an outcropping of something that might at one time have been their drive unit. He scrambled over to his superior and gave him a brief appraising glance. "We've got a pretty fair field of view in all directions, and it's a fair bet that if anyone lives here, they saw us come down. I'm pretty sure that I spotted what could be the gate off to the..." Tenbaum turned his face to the sky, judging the passage of celestial bodies as they had been crawling from the wreckage. That one moon seemed to be very obstinately traveling in the opposite direction to the other two did not help his direction-finding skills. Finally, he settled for pointing, "It should be that way, sir."

Noting Tenbaum's puzzlement about directions, Godfrey decided to let it pass and stood shakily to his feet. "All right, people, here's the deal: we've a bit of a hike ahead of us. I know we're tired and beat up, but it's time to go home now."

They marched in haggard silence, only the dull thud of boots upon the ground to mark time. It was five kilometers to the Stargate, give or take, and it could not come fast enough for any of them. If the ship's starboard aerilon hadn't been damaged in their escape, they might have been able to land closer. As it was, each of them was very thankful to be alive. The familiar verdant greenery of the planet was not even enough to cheer them and even Monroe's usually unflappable spirit was locked away somewhere in a very dark basement.

Arriving at the 'Gate an hour and a half later, Godfrey called for a brief rest. There had been no sign of German pursuit past the initial escape and no indication that their crash had been discovered, or even seen. While they rested, Ashley examined Monroe's ankle again, and Tenbaum offered to massage Myrrwnn's shoulder. The Jaffa waved off his offer, her ears turned back in annoyance. "Not weak," she protested. "Am fine." Her attention was more focused upon the Tok'ra, who seemed to have fared better than the rest of them in the crash. "Keltit is well?"

A soft flashing of the eyes and Keltit smiled weakly to her teammates. There was yet a great sadness within her eyes, and a red rim of puffy skin was evidence of her silent weeping over the loss of Durann. "We are well," her dual tones reassured. "Heartbroken still, but well enough. Thank you."

Soon, Godfrey called them to their feet and dialed Earth. "Well, maybe not how one would want a first mission to go, but we came through it okay. Wally, send the code," Godfrey stated flatly after the Gate had finished. At the latter's nod, the group staggered through the shimmering event horizon...

* * *

><p>It hadn't ceased to amaze her yet, looking around the command deck of the newest Tau'ri battleship <em>Athena<em>. She couldn't help but to grin to herself as she sat in the central seat and realized that all of this was hers. Colonel Samantha Carter, United Earth Space Force. She giggled, remembering that General O'Neill had tried very hard to get the Space Force dubbed "Starfleet", but the other brass just wouldn't go for it. She still couldn't believe it all. In a matter of weeks the SGC had gone from a clandestine operation deep under Cheyenne Mountain to worldwide acclaim. The possibilities were staggering. She could only hope that her people did not go the way of the Langarans.

Turning to her helm officer, a mousy young man in his early twenties and still very wet behind the ears, Carter gave the order to revert from hyperspace. The ship did not lurch beneath her; it did not even tremble. Instead, several alarms blared to life and her sensor chief called out to her, "Captain, we have a ship in orbit of the planet matching no known configurations."

"Let's see it, Jones." Carter leaned forward in her seat and stared at a panoramic window that wasn't really a window. It was, rather, a highly sophisticated viewing screen that had been developed from technology left to them by the Asgard. The image magnified by her order and she could see the blue-green gem of P2X-79TK hanging in space, embraced by the orbits of her three moons. And something else. Carter ordered the image magnified again and everyone on the bridge gasped.

There, hanging majestically above the planet's main landmass was a vessel, its elongated hull bristling with cannon. The superstructure, where it was presumed the command decks were located, was set far back along the hull – not so unlike the _Athena_. The difference, however, was in the hull markings. Carter, along with every member of her crew, could make no mistake about the meaning of the symbol emblazoned upon the superstructure. In a nanosecond a potential new friend was transformed into a dangerous old enemy and Carter wasted no time. "Shields up and scramble the three-oh-twos. Launch only on my order." Swiveling in her seat, Carter caught the communications officer in her sights, "Have they tried to hail us?"

"No, Ma'am," answered the woman in cool, even tones. "They may not even know we're here."

"Good." Carter's face was set into a hard mask of determination. "Let's see to it that they don't. Get us under cloak and get Daniel up here."

"Captain, we have a very faint and fading ion trail leading away from the planet and a bit of what might be wreckage on the far side of the planet from the other ship," Jones reported. "It looks like the wreckage might be a small fighter craft."

"And since they seem to be in a geosynchronous orbit, they may not be too inclined to pick it up." Carter's grin turned hungry. "Bring us around, helm. Nice and easy. Let's not startle them, but I want that craft in my hangar bay ASAP."

In a few moments, as the not-so-mysterious vessel passed behind the planet's horizon, a familiar voice bubbled across the deck, "Hey Sam; what's going on?"

Carter turned in her chair and smiled dryly to her friend, "Daniel, you aren't going to believe this."

* * *

><p>...and into a bank of cameras and jostling bodies, brilliant flashes and soft whump of flash bulbs assaulting their night-adjusted eyes. The throng of people where hurling questions at them in a rapid and unintelligible roar. Myrrwnn tensed, her fur bristling and she was very near to answering in kind. A familiar voice from overhead declared, "Welcome home, SG-1. Everyone else, clear the damned gate room."<p>

The group of five, shrank back from the unexpected chaos in the spacious chamber, suddenly not feeling so enormous. Slowly and with great reluctance, the assault of light and voices abated, and SG-1 was allowed some space to breathe. As they descended the grated ramp, armed security was herding the mass of photographers out one door while General Landry was striding hurriedly through the other. "It's about time, Major." His tone was far more relieved than annoyed, though there was a hint of annoyance at its edges. Gesturing to the retreating mob Landry grumbled, "Well, the cat is out..." He paused and finally took a good look at the team's new friend, a six-foot-tall feline, and flushed a deep crimson. "Ah, yes; we'll pretend I wasn't about to say that."

Ushering the team out of the Gate room and toward the infirmary, Landry was explaining the new situation on Earth, "The whole thing's been disclosed. Everything from the first Abydos mission in '94 to our latest exploration of P3X-7305K." The man did not sound entirely happy about any of this. "Naturally, the public is immensely curious about it all. You're heroes, and people are going to want to get to know you."

Keltit scoffed loudly which raised Landry's eyebrows. "General, the impact on your fragmented society will be dangerous in the extreme. How could your leaders have considered such an act?"

Landry took a moment to wrap his mind around the Tok'ra speaking through Finn's mouth. "It was decided that word would irreparably leak eventually. It was deemed better to do it on our own terms, rather than the public's. Besides, this new administration seems to have faith in the 'adaptability of humankind', or so she's said."

The rest of the team seemed far too exhausted to much care at this point. With a beleaguered sigh Godfrey added, "And things just got more interesting out there, too."


	8. Epilogue

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Rated M for some language and mature themes and some off-screen violence. My apologies to any German speakers if I got the language bits a teensy bit wrong. Google Translate is not always the best. On that note, some of the things expressed here are NOT my opinions, feelings or anything of the sort. My apologies if anyone is offended, but sometimes one needs to tell the rough stories, no?**

**DISCLAIMER: Stargate, Stargate SG-1, and its related characters and setting are not my property and I'm only borrowing them for a little while for some free entertainment. No infringement is intended.**

**Epilogue**

The intensive medical examination and debriefing now completed, Godfrey stood motionless under the steaming shower. The water battering at his filthy skin was meditative for him. Cathartic. He wept. The results of the examination were less than satisfactory for a first mission, though it could be argued that it was almost par for the course for SG-1...even if that SG-1 had been an entirely different team altogether. There was a certain reputation to uphold, he supposed, and they'd made good on it.

Wally called out to him from the locker room that it was about time to go home. He thanked Wally and closed off the refreshing stream and grabbed a towel. If his second in command noticed the puffiness around his eyes, the man didn't say anything about it. After dressing in fresh clothes, the two men strode out of the locker room only to be met by their lady friends.

Finn and Keltit were largely fine, whatever contusions Ashley had sustained through their ordeal was being swiftly handled by Keltit. Monroe, on the other hand, was sporting a pair of crutches and a sweet hunter green cast on her left ankle. Myrrwnn's side was well bound and bandaged. She was wrapped in a sheet in a fashion not so unlike images of women on walls of ancient pyramids; her breasts were still bared. No one said anything about it. No infections so far as Dr. Lam could find, and for all the brutality of the German doctor, the wound was clean and precisely made. He shared a look with Ashley for a moment and the young woman nodded to him in understanding.

Together, they made their way to the commissary for a decent meal. Quarters were being arranged for Myrrwnn, who had agreed to stay with them for the time being. During the examination, Myrrwnn had been informed of tretonin but the proud Jaffa had put off starting the drug even though it would free her from dependence on the symbiote she carried in her abdominal pouch.

They ate quietly, weary and with little to say to anyone. They endured the awed stares and both Godfrey and Finn glared down a couple of young airmen who could not get long enough looks at Myrrwnn. The Jaffa just flicked her tail and laughed softly. Between the four humans, they were still trying to wrap their heads around the disclosure of the Stargate, and the fact that they were now celebrities. Their uniforms now sported a new patch, showing the national flag of the wearer. Godfrey found that rather silly. It was like Finn, Tenbaum and himself being made to wear their state flags on their uniforms. He mentally shrugged and continued to pick lazily at his meatloaf.

Finally Monroe spoke up and voiced what they were all thinking, "We're at war again, aren't we? World War Two, the sequel." She shoved peas around on her plate, watching them roll about with no concern for where they were going. One found itself suddenly mired in a gravy slide from Mt. Mashed Potato. The pea didn't really care.


End file.
